What Nigerians Are Giving Up to Keep Going
By Islam Aminu Bala
Nigeria wakes up every morning to the familiar rhythm of life. Workers rush to their workplaces, students head to school, traders open their shops, and drivers navigate crowded roads. Everyone appears to be moving, but beneath that movement lies a quiet struggle.
For many Nigerians, each day begins with difficult calculations. How much will transportation cost? What can the family afford to eat? Can the bills be paid on time? Can one still afford the things that were once considered normal?
These questions may sound ordinary, but together they reveal a deeper story about the realities of living in Nigeria today. Rising costs have made food, transportation, housing and other basic needs major concerns for households across the country.
However, statistics alone cannot fully explain the human experience behind the rising cost of living. Behind every percentage and economic figure is a student struggling to afford transport, a parent reducing the contents of a shopping basket, or a worker whose salary disappears almost immediately after it arrives.
For many people, survival has become a daily routine. It may mean cancelling plans because they are too expensive, choosing between needs and wants, working longer hours or postponing personal dreams because immediate challenges have become more urgent.
This raises an important question: what is the difference between surviving and living? Survival means meeting immediate needs, while living should provide room to dream, rest, learn, create, enjoy time with loved ones and look towards the future with some degree of confidence.
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The situation is particularly important for young Nigerians. They are expected to study, acquire skills, build careers and contribute to society. Yet dreams require opportunities, and when basic living expenses consume most available resources, pursuing those dreams becomes increasingly difficult.
Despite these challenges, Nigerians continue to demonstrate remarkable resilience. Young people start businesses with limited resources, learn new skills, support one another and continue to pursue education and career opportunities. Hardship has not completely destroyed hope, but it is fair to ask how much resilience people should be expected to display.
There is a difference between being resilient during difficult times and being forced to permanently live in difficult conditions. Nigerians have repeatedly adjusted to rising prices, expensive transportation and changing economic realities. But there must be a point where constant adjustment is no longer enough.
The conversation about Nigeria’s cost of living should therefore go beyond statistics and economic reports. It should focus on the student trying to complete school, the parent struggling to provide for a family, the worker trying to make a salary last until the end of the month and the entrepreneur fighting to keep a small business alive.
Nigeria is blessed with resilient and hardworking people. But Nigerians need more than another lesson in resilience. They need an environment where they can do more than survive—where they have stability, opportunities and the freedom to pursue their dreams. We are surviving, but the bigger question remains: are we really living?
Islam is a 200 level student of Mass Com at Maryam Abacha American University of Nigeria. She can be reached via:[email protected]
