The current economic situation of many Nigerians, be they unemployed, employed or small business operators is, to say the least, perplexing and confusing. Inflation continues to worsen the cost of living of the populace eroding the purchasing power of citizenries with no succour in sight. Even though inflation is a concept that affects all of us, most importantly high inflation is hostile to even the economy. With persistent inflation, businesses and households will continue to perform poorly and we will continue to pay more for the same goods and services. The consequence and impact of inflation (price instability) in recent…
Author: Timi Olubiyi
The Board of Directors plays an important role in businesses by being responsible for making strategic decisions essential to the development of companies and it’s headed by a President or Chairman. While the day-to-day activities of the organization are run by the Managing Director or the Chief Executive Officer (CEO). Family CEO Duality or CEO duality in the context of business is referred to as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) doubling as Chairman of the Board (COB) simply put CEO/Chairman designation. To achieve CEO duality then, the roles of the CEO and the Chair of the Board of Directors have to…
The number of small businesses in the formal and informal sectors of the Nigerian economy continues to increase due to the vital role that small businesses play as a driving force of any economy and the pillar of major developed economies worldwide. Despite Nigeria’s reliance on oil and revenues derived from it, the country’s economy is primarily supported by small businesses, including nano, kiosk, micro, and small businesses in particular. A visible reference within this space includes the vulcanizers, corner shop owners, single retail marketers, repairers, painters, business centre operators, restaurants, market women, and men in the various open markets,…
By Timi Olubiyi, Ph.D. Happy New Year 2023. The yuletide has witnessed a significant consumption rate across the country in the consumer goods sector. On a larger scale, sachet usage has dominated the retail industry in many parts of Africa but more significantly in Nigeria, where the population is high, and there is a huge demand for consumer goods. The sustainable development goal (SDG) 12 recognises that long-term development and economic growth are contingent upon modifying our production and consumption practises. It necessitates more efficient and eco-friendly management of materials throughout their entire lifecycle, including production, consumption, and disposal. However…
Businesses in emerging economies, large, small, and micro, continue to bear the brunt of inflation, high energy costs (diesel and electricity), and, more broadly, global economic turbulence, which has snowballed into a slew of challenges that increasingly threaten the survival of many enterprises across all sectors. Attention to businesses, particularly small businesses, continues to heightened because of the increasingly difficult times and widespread uncertainty in many countries due to post pandemic consequences. Therefore, more and more businesses are looking for ways to fight back against the harsh economy and hostile environments. One of the ways widely considered, based on the…
Despite the significance of SMEs to the economy and national development, Africa has a high rate of business failures and short-lived businesses. In Nigeria SMEs account for 48 percent of the national GDP, 96 percent of businesses, and 84 percent of employment in the country, according to a PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) report. In contrast, due to the country’s dire economic circumstances, at least 1.9 million SMEs have been lost since 2017, according to the report, yet business closures persist at an alarming rate. Why do so many businesses fail so quickly, be they structured or unstructured? It can be attributed to…
The Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, as well as the economic turbulence, have had significant impacts on businesses, manufacturers and households, including individual lifestyle and well-being in recent times. The direct consequence of these impacts has been a very large increase in inflation numbers in the country, and it is currently having serious implications. Globally, no country is immune to inflation. Around the world, inflationary pressure has been experienced in the USA, the UK, and many other developed and developing nations. But in Nigeria, the peculiarity is that inflation has been getting higher steadily for the last two years. Nigeria is one…
The term “informal economy” covers a vast array of circumstances and events throughout the country. In contrast, working in the informal economy (IE) is frequently based on small or undefined workplaces, unsafe and unhealthy working conditions, unregulated, low levels of skills and productivity, low or irregular incomes, long working hours, and a lack of access to information, markets, financing, training, and technology. Informal activities are those that occur outside of the legal framework and the government regulation. The informal economy can be viewed as either the nature of the enterprise’s operations or the nature of its employee relationships. Consequently, millions…
Nigerians and Nigeria, Happy Democracy Day! Democracy Day is observed to commemorate the country’s restoration of democracy in 1999, and it has become an annual event since. True democracy, on the other hand, comes when the environment encompasses safety, ample economic benefits, free, fair, and trustworthy voting system, as well as the decrease of the hydra-headed difficulties, most notably the ravaging poverty and unemployment in the country. Electronic governance is one of the methods that may be used to achieve full and true democracy. The World Bank defines electronic governance as “the government’s use of information technologies (including Wide Area…
In recent times, we have seen more businesses reporting low or no profit and, in some cases, no revenue. The case of business failures is equally high and prevalent, which could be attributed to the changing landscape with the aftermath of coronavirus pandemic, high inflation, poor supply chains, high exchange rate regime, and a host of other struggles. Despite the coronavirus pandemic radically altering business operations and customer experiences, many businesses in Africa, particularly Nigeria, have stuck to the prevailing old pattern of customer service, which frequently involves poor customer convenience and low customer satisfaction. Though we have seen more…
The rising cost of living is impacting globally but differently, and it is clearly evident that expenses and bills continue to rise steeply. The cost of food, household consumables, and other essentials has skyrocketed in recent times from Cairo, to Botswana, Delhi, Shanghai, London, Houston, Mexico City, Johannesburg, Mumbai, Dublin and Manila, name it. This price hike has been on the increase as part of the consequences of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), and this continues to shrink the available disposable income of the majority altogether. In the Nigerian context, a loaf of bread that was N350 in 2020 is now…
Many people are unaware that the small business sector in Nigeria can have a significant impact on both the environment and the economy. The sector could also provide the country with rapid industrialization and non-oil industrial export gains. All that is required is more structure, framework, support and participation from government, entrepreneurs, politicians, policymakers, and academics. Nevertheless, what is painful is that, despite this potential and opportunities, the country’s small businesses are failing at an alarming rate. Clearly, the COVID-19 pandemic consequences, fuel cost, inflation and incessant insecurity have continued to harm these businesses. From my experience working with Small…
Genetically modified foods: business, feeding and public concerns The common social concerns are high mortality rate, poverty and malnutrition in the country. But for the concerns that bother on health, the advice is usually to reduce fats, cholesterols and sugar intake, improve on nutrition and good diet, do not smoke and so on to avoid health issues. However, the fact is food is about health and healthy living, but less is heard about the need to promote organic food eating, in a world where innovation is now widespread in Agric-Business and farming, with the genetically engineering of crops and…
As businesses grow many decisions come to bear from marketing to funding, expansion, investments, operations, logistics, staffing, technology adoption, and so on, all to enhance the business productivity. Without a doubt, just like individuals make poor choices and bad decisions businesses do too. Business leaders and entrepreneurs make bad decisions not because they are not clever or experienced, but because they are humans. Certainly, humans are never perfect decision-makers at all, a bad decision can occur once in a while or repeatedly and such is the case with business leaders, entrepreneurs, top management, and/or owner-managers of businesses around as well.…
The new year is here, it is my prayer that 2022 will be a profitable year for all individuals, businesses, and households. Our new year resolutions at every level must include enhancing productivity and improving performance. Without a doubt, transportation is central to this and can be an effective indicator of performance in any economy, business, and quality of life. Simple things like getting to work, school, meetings, appointments, trade facilitation, transacting, moving cargoes, travels, and even delivery of social services such as rescues during emergencies can become extremely difficult with poor transportation. In fact, business decision-making and access to…
The current landscape of retirement in Nigeria will change in the next couple of years as the aging workforce is becoming increasinglyvisible in businesses, government, politics and in sports. Besides,with or without employment retirement phase will surely come for every individual. However, persistent high rates of unemployment have been a serious concern in the country over the years, without any visible unemployment benefit, insurance or social policy. The reality is that many in this unemployment category will equally be reaching retirement age and will be transiting in few years.So the impact of unemployment should be seen as long term and…
Where problems exist and persist there are usually opportunities, such is the case of the perennial issues with the Lagos ports where the vessels, trucks, and cargo congestions persist, business opportunities abound. The Lagos ports the Apapa and Tin-Can ports are the busiest in Nigeria and for this reason, congestions exist and cargo remained trapped inside the ports. Thissituation makescargo evacuation difficult and this ultimately affects the ease of doing business in the ports and indeed around the portsenviron. These situations continue to hinder trade facilitation, free flow of traffic, and ease of doing business in and around Apapa area…
World over, competition exists across several fields and sectors of the economy and it is inevitable in business regardless of the business type, structure, size, and industry of operations. Fair competition exists when no single buyer or seller can control the price or product in the market. Even if a business enjoys a monopoly in a sector it must compete with other businesses over where consumer spend their money. Consequently, competition is really not a bad phenomenon as it can spark innovation, productivity, competitiveness, and it largely contributes to an effective business environment. For this reason and more businesses needs…
Planning is key to any form of business structure anywhere in the world, be it a large enterprise, partnership, small or even start-up. Benjamin Franklin once said, “If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail.” Therefore, business owners and managers should endeavour to continually plan throughout the business existence without hesitation. It is more pertinent to note that the novel coronavirus pandemic has continued to cause unprecedented disruptions to businesses, economies, and livelihoods in different magnitudes globally. Businesses, in particular, continue to grapple with strategies to stem the tide of the effect of the negative impact of…
