my view on the high cost of items in my country.

in Steem4Nigeria6 months ago

INTRODUCTION

Good after, dear Steemians of steem4Nigeria, it's good to be here. How have you all been in this biting economy? I wanna appreciate @ruthjoe for this contest topic which is an avenue of what we are facing currently, so please join me as I talk about the current challenges in my country.

what is the situation in your country currently?, Has items in your country increased in price lately?

Nigeria is one of the largest country in Africa, otherwise known as the 'giant of Africa' and also the most populated nation. It's also very much in natural resources but it's unfortunate that the current situation in Nigeria is nothing to be proud of. This started when the current president of Nigeria, president Ahmed Tinubu was sworn in. The first thing he did was to remove fuel subsidy which led to an increase in the price of fuel resulting to an increase in the cost of living.

The situation in Nigeria currently is very bad because the cost of living isn't favouring the common man. Everything has increased in price due to the removal of subsidy, even the crops that are planted have also increased in price. The only thing that hasn't increased in price in my country today in most states is increments in people's salary especially those working in the private sector.

Mention 5 items in your country that has increased in price. How much was it before and how much does it cost now

• The major thing that has increased in price in my country due to the removal of fuel subsidy is the price of fuel. The price of fuel affects the price of every other thing in the nation. Because, for other businesses to thrive, they need to be able to afford transport fare or fuel their cars or move from one place to another for delivery. This is why increase in fuel price has led to increase in every other thing. In the past, a litre of fuel could be bought at 617 naira, that is about 2 Steem tho that was after the removal of fuel subsidy but today, a litre of fuel goes for 1,200 naira, that's equivalent to the price of 4 Steem.

Screenshot_20240911-152729.jpg
Filling station increases its fuel price to also make profit in the biting economy

• Another thing that has skyrocketed in price due to the hard economy is increase in transportation. I can still remember when we used to pay transport fare from anywhere in Uyo to plaza with just 50 naira, then it was increased to 100, then 150 and currently, a drop is 300 naira, that is equivalent to 1 Steem price if the distance is trekable, it is 200 naira, nobody will pick you if you are with 150, they will always remind you of how much they are buying a litre of fuel. Apart from plaza, transport fare to every other place has skyrocketed.

Screenshot_20240911-153543.jpg
The fare to travel or move around is now double the price.

• The one that has affected everyone most is the price of garri which is a common food in Nigeria. Nigerians do not joke with swallow so the increase in price of garri has really affected everyone. A 4-litre paint container measure of yellow garri was sold for 2,500 naira early this year, it was 1,200 naira in December 2023, but currently, it goes for 3,000 if not more than that which is equivalent to the price of 11 Steem.

Screenshot_20240911-155230.jpg
Garri in custard rubber is now a luxury

• Beans was one of the foods Nigerians were able to afford. We could even joke about it that it was given to people at the correction centre but currently, I'm not sure the people at the correction centre are still eating it due to how expensive it is. A cup of beans was 300 naira in the past but it's currently 500 naira now, that's equivalent to the price of 1 Steem. And the question is, how many cups will one but that will satisfy one? So before you can cook beans and eat to your satisfaction, you have to buy 3 cups, that is about 1,500 naira. Even tho it's still expensive, I still manage to cook it.

Screenshot_20240911-160145.jpg
3 cups of beans is nothing to write home about

• The last thing that has increased in price in Nigeria is the charges on online transfer in Nigeria. Before now, it was more like there was no charges for online transfer, and later on, a charge of 10 naira was placed on every charges not up to 5000 but from transfer of 5000 naira up, the charges goes higher. This has also affected businesses in Nigeria because, if you go to purchase an item, the the sell doesn't have pos, he or she will ask you to include his or her charges if you want to transfer to him or her.

How are you coping with the difficulties in your country and what do you think is causing these difficulties?

This economy has affected everyone especially those working in the private sector. Things had really been difficult, unfortunately, salaries are not increased even tho every other thing is increased in terms of price. I'm trying to cope with the difficulties by cutting cost, I rather go for my needs and cut down on my wants. Except something is very important, I don't purchase it. I also trek to most places, except it's a long journey, I don't pay transportation. This has really helped me. It's really unfortunate that there are so many things I would love to have, but I learn to let if go because I can't afford it.

As a teacher in a private school, I'm really going through a lot coupled with late payment of salaries. I really wish I can have more than one source of income as one source of income is not reliable in this economy.

Screenshot_20240911-174356.jpg
Carrot soap that was 700 naira is currently 1,300 naira equivalent to the price if 4 steem

The reason behind this difficulty is the removal of the fuel subsidy. Since our president removed the fuel subsidy, the citizens have really been going through a lot. Another reason for this difficulty is that out currency, the naira has lost its value. Even a country like Cameroon, it's currency holds more value than ours and the last reason for this difficulty is that we import almost everything we use. We import more abd export less and this also affects cost of living abd brings about hardship in the economy.

If you have an opportunity to leave your country to another country for greener pastures which country will you like to travel to and why?

I would love to relocate to Canada if I have an opportunity because there are more jobs there and people earn higher there. Also, I believe if I work, I would be able to cope with the economy there.

CONCLUSION

It's sad that a country said to be the giant of Africa is the one whose citizens are suffering more. We really hope and pray for things to get better, but no one knows if things will ever return to the way it was. So it's for everyone to double up efforts and work harder and smarter to survive.

Thank you for having me here. I'm calling on @bela90

@uzma4882
@richy20 to talk about their experience in the rising economy.

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MODs Comment/Recommendation:

It's tough when the cost of living keeps going up, especially when salaries don't increase to match. The removal of subsidies really impacted prices on everything, making it harder for the average person. It's a challenging situation for many of us. Hopefully, things will improve soon for everyone in Nigeria.

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