Nearly every nation in the world is united in opposition to the reason behind the unforeseen attack on Ukraine. However, they were injured rather than benefited. The major natural gas supplier in the world is Russia. Russia stopped supplying gas to all those nations when it saw that they were protesting. Gas prices increased as a result, and inflation followed.
Ukraine was the world’s greatest exporter of grains, providing food for an estimated 400 million people globally. The Black Sea, which serves as its primary maritime route, is inaccessible because of the conflict. There are already severe food problems in countries like the Middle East and Africa. Their primary source of grain was Ukraine, and the difficulty in exporting made their food situation exponentially worse.
Among the largest European nations, Germany imports half of its gas supply from Russia, Italy gets 46%, and France barely gets 25% from Russia. Bosnia and Herzegovina, Moldova, and North Macedonia are just a few of the smaller European nations who totally depend on Russian gas. 90% of the gas supplies for Finland and Latvia come from Russia, while Serbia depends on it 89% of it. The supplies have been cut back on or even stopped in certain regions because of the ongoing war.
The economy of the globe is being negatively impacted by the dispute between the two nations. Droughts in Africa, limited gas supplies in Europe, and other problems for the Ukrainians are all the result of it. While everyone is trying their best to assist those in need, the globe is hurdling towards an economic crisis and countless lives are being lost.
Nigerian Economy
Thoughts on fuel subsidy removal.
It is fair to say that the proposed subsidy elimination is a poor choice at this time given the negative impact it would have on residents, especially the lower and middle classes. The elimination of the subsidy will raise the cost of premium motor spirits, raising transportation costs, the rate of inflation, lowering purchasing power, and increasing poverty. This will surely lead to more suffering, especially considering the present inflation rate.
To ease the financial suffering of the populace, gasoline subsidies were first implemented in the 1970s. The federal government spends a lot of money on subsidies compared to other developmental programs. State-owned company NNPC reported that 2.91 trillion naira ($7 billion) was spent on a fuel subsidy between January and September 2022, a sum the government has attributed to declining public resources. If the government is adamant about eliminating the gasoline subsidy, it only makes sense to allocate the money to infrastructure, healthcare, and transportation but due to the high level of corruption in the country I find this very hard to happen.
Nigeria is one of the world’s top oil producers. However, it is also one of the world’s biggest users of refined commodities, making for more than 7% of Africa’s consumption of these goods. To generate oil products domestically, the nation’s refineries must be renovated. The price of oil goods, including gasoline, will decrease when shipping, transportation, and foreign exchange rates are considered. Since the economic cost of supply is lower and the government won’t be compelled to cover any deficits or subsidies, fuel prices won’t be excessive.
The government must gain the people’s social trust by demonstrating to them that the funds used for the subsidy will be wisely allocated to productive sectors and that the proceeds of the funds will be accountable for it to successfully remove the subsidy without inciting harsh reactions from the people. Additionally, the federal government may want to think about developing the electric power industry since consistent energy will reduce the need for fuel for generators and promote the usage of electric vehicles even more.
African Economy
Zimbabwe: the country’s newest agricultural powerhouse
Zimbabwe has recorded its greatest wheat harvest, totalling 375,000 tons, making the southern African nation an agricultural powerhouse and self-sufficient.
Zimbabwe is on track to develop into a self-sufficient agricultural powerhouse with a registered wheat harvest of 375 thousand tons.
To satisfy its needs, the nation no longer import wheat, saving 300 million dollars in import expenses which can be spread across other sectors in the country and can help boost their economy.
Zimbabwe stands out for its proactive approach in the present environment when African nations are struggling due to the scarcity of due to the war ongoing between Russia and Ukraine or the high price of Russian and Ukrainian wheat.
