Tuesday morning, February 27, saw the start of a two-day demonstration in Lagos, the commercial center of Nigeria, soon before other cities throughout the country joined.
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), one of the nation’s largest unions, has urged employees to show their displeasure over the growing hardship and insecurity. “Endhardshipnow” was the watchword.
Nigerians are experiencing one of the greatest economic crises the country has seen in a long time, brought on by soaring inflation and the fallout from monetary policies that have driven the value of the naira to an all-time low compared to the US dollar.
One of the demands in a letter that was made public by the media stated, “Open all food storage silos and ensure equitable distribution across the country.”
The government has been urged to renounce World Bank and IMF policies, which the umbrella trade union NLC claims are making matters worse in Nigeria. The finance minister said on Monday, February 26, that direct cash transfers will once again be available to assist more than 12 million homes who are at risk.
The worst of the problem can be found in northern Nigerian conflict zones, where farming communities are compelled to leave violence and are unable to grow food. Wale Edun told the BBC that President Bola Tinubu was “listening and acting in order to meet the needs of Nigerians” before the protest on Tuesday.
Not only is Nigeria’s economy the biggest in Africa. Services like banking and information technology are the key drivers of its GDP, after which come manufacturing and processing businesses and lastly agriculture.
