In many countries, the cost of living is fair enough for the citizens, in some countries, the cost of living is affordable, but in my country, the cost of living wants to injure the living.
We are in a place where the price of goods and services appreciates every 10 minutes but the wages are stagnant, eaten up by inflation.
The naira to dollar exchange rate has been rapidly increasing for some months now and currently, it is just going up and down.
Based on this and some other factors, the cost of living in my country is expensive.
The prices of goods is rapidly increasing every single hour with no sign of reduction. I was chit-chatting with my mom last week, and she brought up a conversation about the cost of living in my place. I sighed and I started telling her about how things became costly over night. I told her about a day I went to the market to buy some smoked fish. The seller told me that the fish was two thousand naira and I happily got two which cost four thousand naira. Going deep into the market for other things, I realized that the two fishes I got will not be enough for two weeks, so I decided to buy one more. I got to another fish stand, saw the same type of fish I bought in the previous stand and I asked about the pice. I was told that the same fish I bought for 2000 is now 3500. I left the stand quickly and went straight to the previous fish stand where I got fish for two thousand naira. Before approaching the stand, I relaxed a little, then with a huge smile, i asked him for one more fish. He brought it out and I extended two thousand naira to him but he rejected it and told me that the price has just increased to three thousand five hundred naira. I became dumbfounded. A fish I just got for two thousand?
The one question I asked my self was: where is country heading to?
I kept the fish because it was way out o my budget.
It made me sad because I will have to spend a lot on fish the next time I go to the market.
Compared to other countries, I do not think the price of goods appreciates spontaneously as this. In other countries with a high cost of living, the wages which the workers receive is always at equilibrium with the cost of living. In my country however, the cost of living weigh 130kg while the the wages are as small as 70kg. Things are pretty much organized in other countries but in mine, seems like the economics we studied in school was just for decorating our brain with knowledge.
Though I love my country dearly, It is blessed with many natural resources and beautiful landscape, however, the plans for the country in terms of its growth needs to be redefined.
Few weeks ago, I was having a conversation with a friend about the inflation currently hitting our currency. He told me how he plans of traveling out of the country and asked me about my own plans but I just smiled and told him that I done plan leaving the country yet. He shouted, and said do you want to remain in this grave yard for a country? I looked at him with disappointment but hid it. I just smiled and agreed to what he has to say because i had no energy for an argument.
I thought of what he said and found some sense in it.
Even though my friends have this type of mindset, I will not want to leave my country for no reason, no matter how badly the inflation hits.
People Believe that the coster of living is greener out there but for me, irrespective of how green it can be, I will never leave my country to other countries in search for a better cost of living. I a a Nigerian and in the nearest future, I want to be among those that can solve a problem in Nigeria, not run away from it.
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