Nigeria’s misery index worsens to 77.5%

LIFE appears getting worse for majority of Nigerians as the misery index has grown to about 77 per cent according to calculations by some economists.

The misery index is an economic indicator, which helps to determine how the average citizen is doing economically and calculated by adding seasonally adjusted unemployment rate to the annual inflation rate.

Economist and Chief Executive Officer, Global Analytics Consulting Limited, Mr Tope Fasua told a correspondent of Tribune Online that Nigerian leaders are generally selfish and usually do not bother about the electorates once they gain public office.

As at the end of June 2017, youth unemployment in Nigeria stood at 61.6 percent, average unemployment was 14.2 percent while inflation rate in September was 15.98 percent.

As a result of worsening economic situation, desperate Nigerians have been leaving the country in droves through both legal and illegal routes.

According to data from National Commission for Refugees and International Organisation for Migration (IOM), 36,000 went through the Sahara Desert to Europe alone in 2016.

Also, 11,009 women from Nigeria went into Italy alone during the year from a figure of 433 in 2013.