Nigeria Commemorates its Independence day Amidst calls for Economic Reform
The demonstrators, who carried posters, called for greater employment and opportunity for youth, particularly in a nation that, despite being the continent’s leading oil producer, has some of the highest rates of hunger and poverty in the world.
Amid growing suffering brought on by the government’s policies to save more money and support declining foreign investments, this is the second large-scale demonstration in two months in the most populous nation in Africa. During the most recent protest in August, hundreds more people were detained and at least twenty protesters were shot dead.
The economic measures, which the administration has supported, have caused the inflation rate to soar to a 28-year high, even as the value of the currency is at historic lows in relation to the US dollar.
The poverty rate in the country is at least 63%. The administration has had trouble generating employment. Additionally, the northeast is still experiencing the longest war on militancy in history. A young entrepreneur who participated in the protests, Adetayo Babatunde-Daniel, stated, “The truth is, there’s nothing worth celebrating about Nigeria.”
Bola Tinubu, the president of Nigeria, who was elected in May of last year on the platform of restored optimism, justified the reforms as essential progressive measures that stopped the nation’s economic “collapse.
Also Read:
The President of Iran Calls for Action in Gaza and Lebanon to “End Israel’s Barbarism.
