President Muhammadu Buhari was 79 yesterday. Since winning the 2015 Presidential elections and again in 2019 he has now celebrated 7 birthdays as President.
On this occasion of his 79th birthday and 7th birthday celebration as President, there are a few things Nigerians will want to see in their party packs.
Typically the end of the year is a time of mass movements within and outside the country. Nigerians who have not visited home in the course of the year would travel home from wherever they have worked all year, some by air but a large percentage by road. Unfortunately, road travel has become luxury citizens can barely afford in light of kidnappings for huge ransoms and banditry. The gift of safe road travels would be priceless and the President can include this in his birthday party pack.
The figures of deaths and fatalities recorded this year alone typified by incidents like the recent ‘killing’ of persons in Sokoto is evidence enough that the policies made have not had the desired effect of stemming insecurity.
Herder-farmer crisis, sectarian agitations, terrorism and insurgency have reached a high under this current administration.
The effects of insecurity are widespread and the unprecedented increase in prices of food, which is said to have put at least seven million people under the poverty level, is only one example of the impact of the many unrests in all geopolitical zones in the country.
Policies and corresponding actions beyond mere statements to tackle Nigeria’s intractable insecurity is a great idea for the president’s birthday takeaway pack.
Inflation has continued to increase, despite a decrease in the inflation rate from 15.99% to 15.40% in the Nigeria Bureau of Statistics’ latest update, food prices and prices of essential products have remained high. The implication as the year draws to a close is that even more families are unable to afford Christmas chicken and rice for the end of year festivities.
Clear-cut, well thought out policies to tackle inflation head-on will make a nice party pack package.
The Naira has been in free fall for a long time, continuing to fall in value due to uncontrolled inflation. A recent Dataphyte analysis noted the importance of reducing the current inflation as the country heads into 2022.
President Buhari may also want to remember that next year when he celebrates his 80th birthday his administration would have removed subsidy totally, and if the issues above persist, it will compound the countries’ problems and push even more people into poverty.
Stopping the Naira from free-falling into oblivion and tackling inflation is not too big an ask as part of the president’s birthday celebration package.
The hope is that when the next birthday comes along, we should have reasons to look back at massive changes.
Nigeria’s unemployment rate of 33.3% is unprecedented. There is not enough gainful employment for Nigeria’s predominantly youthful population. To compound the problem Nigeria also dropped on the investment destination rankings, meaning business ventures that create employment are unlikely to be brought into the country. Twitter’s decision to locate an African headquarters in Ghana instead of Nigeria is an indication that Nigeria is not desirable for investments.
Key sectoral diversification that would encourage a reduction in unemployment is critical and a great gift for marking the president’s 79th year on earth.
Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) account for over 80% of Nigeria’s workforce and employment, it is is a worthy take-away from the President’s birthday party that they receive support for their growth by making it easier to do business in Nigeria and addressing issues that challenge the health of MSMEs like multiple taxations.
A very happy birthday, President Muhammadu Buhari. This time next year when you celebrate your 80th, the hope is that we will be enjoying the goodies from this year’s birthday party packs.
*Party parks are gifts given to attendees of a celebration like birthdays. It is also sometimes referred to as “take-away.