May be the sky is not falling on Nigeria after all!

2023 edition of the Annual Misery Index compiled by Steve Hanke, professor of Applied Economics at John Hopkins University, USA, has been published. The indexes are the sum of unemployment (multiplied by two), inflation, and bank-lending rates, minus the annual percentage change in real GDP per capita.

Below are the 20 most miserable countries in the world. It includes Ghana and South Africa, but not Nigeria!

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2023/05/22/zimbabwe-ukraine-russia-uk-most-miserable-countries/

Nigerians who think this is the worst country on the planet should think again. Of course things are quite bad here, but I tell you, there are many countries in the world that are in much worse situation.

Ghana is in a mess. South Africa's currency fell to its lowest on record against the US dollar last week. Egypt's currency fell more than 50% last year alone. Turkey is a mess. In Lebanon, people have more or less abandoned the local currency. In Lebanon today, bread costs almost 50 times as much as it cost just 3 years ago - imagine a loaf you bought N400 in 2020 now costing N20,000. In Argentina, inflation is currently 103%. Their people now scrummage through waste bins searching for food. Their economy is a basket case. In Iran, protesters heads are chopped off everyday like chickens.

Even many traditionally rich countries are suffering. Many citizens of Canada, UK, France, Germany and many more countries are just managing to survive.

I am not saying we should be joyous o. I am just suggesting that Nigeria could have been in a worse situation.

Ghana's president is very presentable, speaks excellent english, sounds brilliant etc but look where his country has ended. So, it is not all about how 'intelligent' or presentable you think a leader is. Buhari who has been maligned and labelled as 'dumb' and accused of sleeping on the job appears to have been a small blessing to Nigeria in some respects, despite all his shortcomings.

Him 'doing nothing' as it is often alleged may have even saved us from the worst consequences.

I fear that the clamour for fast and big changes that we (including me) are all yearning for from the next government can become counter-productive. Mr Tinubu should please proceed with caution. Some of the proposed policies, like merging the multiple exchange rates into one may result in catastrophic surge in black market dollar rates. The new government should continue to manage the two rates and bring them together over a sustained period. It should not be done at once.

Removing 100% of subsidy at once could jolt the economy into a grievous inflationary spiral resulting in a collapse of the Naira. Subsidy should be removed in stages e.g 40%, 30%, 30% (or any other ratio) over a period of say 18 - 24months.

Gra gra doesn't run a modern economy o. Dont rush things Mr Tinubu. Economic theory is different from reality o.

Miserable List

1 - Zimbabwe 2 - Venezuela 3 - Syria 4 - Lebanon 5 - Sudan 6 - Argentina 7 - Yemen 8 - Ukraine 9 - Cuba 10 - Turkey 11 - Sri Lanka 12 - Haiti
13 - Angola 14 - Tonga 15 - Ghana 16 - South Africa 17 - Suriname 18 - Bosnia and Herzegovina 19 - Iran 20 - Rwanda

Which one be dis again 😏

North Korea not on the list? 😳😳😳

I will never agree until I see Nigeria as number 1 on that list🚶🚶🚶

Thank God you have phone

yeye people making yeye list... as much as Argentina's economy is bad, it certainly aint a miserable place. come out every weekend and see how people are enjoying life to the fullest (with or without money).