Abuja, Nigeria. December 26, 2017- Latest public opinion poll released by NOIPolls has revealed that despite the challenging economic situation and other negative socio-economic indices such as unemployment, inadequate basic social amenities, price inflation, high exchange rate, poverty, etc. that characterised 2017, [1] a larger proportion (41 percent) of the adult population of Nigerian describe 2017 as a good year mainly due to the good health they have enjoyed within the year. On the other hand, 32 percent of Nigerians consider 2017 as a bad year mainly due to bad economy and hardship.
Further findings revealed that most Nigerians are mostly concerned about their safety/security and financial status during the holidays; this could be due to the heightened incidences of road accidents, armed robbery and burglary commonly reported during this season in Nigeria.[2] Moreover, the poll revealed that almost half (45 percent) of adult Nigerians will not be traveling during the holidays while 22 percent stated that they will be traveling.
Finally, as the end of every year is usually characterised by personal reflections on achievements and plans for the next year, the main expectations of Nigerians for 2018 are business expansion (20 percent), improved economy (17 percent), and more job opportunities (16 percent) amongst other expectations. While these expectations are interwoven, the onus is on the government to create an enabling environment for business growth across the country, which will then translate to more job opportunities and an improved economy. These are the key findings from the End of the Year Poll conducted by NOIPolls in the week commencing 4th December 2017.
Brief Background:
End of the year for a typical Nigerian is a period for different celebrations, with diverse festivities ranging from parties to carnivals, social gatherings, family/school reunion, cultural fairs to annual sporting and/ art events, etc.To some Nigerians, it is a time to reflect and see what they have achieved thus far and what to expect in the next year. While most people would travel, others due to certain reasons may not travel and thus remain in their present locations. Against this background, NOIPolls conducted this poll to gauge the perceptions of Nigerians on how they have fared in 2017 and their plans for the festive season, as well as their expectations for the 2018.
Key Findings
One of the characteristics of Nigerians during festive seasons is traveling, ironically the report identified that almost half (45 percent) of the adult population surveyed disclosed that meaning they will not be travelling. This may be a reflection on how the economic situation might have affected them through the year and amongst other reasons. Contrarily, 22 percent stated that they would be travelling while 13 percent of the respondents are undecided, amongst other plans mentioned. As expected, the South-East and South-South zones accounted for the largest proportion of Nigerians who indicated that they would be traveling during the holidays.
On personal wellbeing, findings revealed that Nigerians are mostly concerned about safety/security (20 percent) and financial status (20 percent) especially during this festive seasons. This is consequent upon the incidences of road accidents, armed robbery, burglary and the need to be financially buoyant which has been reported to characterize every end of the year in Nigeria[3]. Similarly, the report indicated that 17 percent of Nigerians are concerned about their standard of living which is directly proportional to their financial status and residents from the South-West zone are mostly particular about this issue.
The end of every year marks a time when people count their achievements and make plans and resolutions for the following year. In the light of these, the survey gauged the opinion of Nigerians regarding their most important achievement in 2017 and it shows that 18 percent specified that they were promoted in their various fields of endeavour, 11 percent disclosed that they completed their education and 10 percent stated they acquired a landed property amongst other key achievements.
Importantly, the poll ascertained how Nigerians perceived the year 2017 and interestingly, despite the challenging economic situation and other socio-economic indices such as high rate of unemployment, inadequate basic and social amenities, price inflation, high exchange rate, poverty, etc., 41 percent of the adult population of Nigerians surveyed acknowledged that 2017 was a good year. The GDP per Capita, in Nigeria, when adjusted by Purchasing Power Parity is equivalent to 31 percent (2,177 USD) of the world’s average which stands at 16,000 USD[4]. This is reflective of the level of optimism of Nigerians despite any circumstance they might be facing. Also the poll identified that 23 percent described the year as Fair and the other hand, 32 percent termed it as a “bad year”.
Furthermore, the poll report ascertained the reasons why 41 percent of Nigerians described 2017 as a good year and results revealed that a larger share of the respondents (28 percent) stated that they enjoyed good health this year. While 15 percent say it is because their businesses flourished, 12 percent indicated that their standard of living actually improved amongst other mentions.
Also, the poll identified that the top 3 reasons why Nigerians described 2017 so far as fair year were because of poor economic situation (24 percent), slightly improved standard of living (17 percent) and high cost of living (15 percent) amongst other reasons.
Similarly, majority of the respondents who considered 2017 to be a bad year said so mainly because of the bad economic situation (26 percent), economic hardship (17 percent) and the high cost of living’ (14 percent) in the country amongst other valid reasons.
The end of every year is marked by personal moments and one of such is to make plans for the coming year. On this note, the perception of Nigerians regarding their expectations in the coming year were assessed and the findings revealed that the mainly expectation of Nigerians in the year 2018 are for them to expand their respective businesses (20 percent) and this is left to the government to create more opportunities and conducive platform for business growth across the country. In addition, 17 percent indicated that they would like the Nigerian economy to improve, which would directly affect their personal wellbeing. Also, 16 percent mentioned that they are looking forward to a better employment opportunities come 2018 amongst other vital reasons.
Finally, the poll has revealed that almost half (45 percent) of the adult population of Nigerians surveyed will be staying at home during the festive period and this could be attributed to the poor economic situation in the country as whole. Also, it was evident from the responses on personal expectation for the year 2018 that most Nigerians are looking forward to an improved economy which is directly proportional to the improvement of their personal wellbeing.
Ultimately, the Nigerian government and key stakeholders should make concerted efforts at creating enabling environment for the economy to continue to grow as it will definitely affect the lives of the common men. Also, the 2018 budget should be given a speedy passage by the Nigerian Senate so as to ensure maximum implementation, for every aspect of the Nigerian economy to experience fresh economic breath and sustainability as the nation continues to recover from recession.
Survey Methods
The opinion poll was conducted in the week of December 4th 2017. It involved telephone interviews of a random nationwide sample. 1,000 randomly selected phone-owning Nigerians aged 18 years and above, representing the six geopolitical zones in the country, were interviewed. With a sample of this size, we can say with 95% confidence that the results obtained are statistically precise – within a range of plus or minus 3%. NOIPolls Limited is the No1 for country specific polling services in West Africa. We conduct periodic opinion polls and studies on various socio-economic and political issues in Nigeria. More information is available at www.noi-polls.com you can also download our mobile app NOIPolls on your smartphone.
Disclaimer
This press release has been produced by NOIPolls Limited to provide information on all issues which form the subject matter of the document. Kindly note that while we are willing to share results from our polls with the general public, we only request that NOIPolls be acknowledged as author whenever and wherever our poll results are used, cited or published.
NOIPolls hereby certifies that all the views expressed in this document accurately reflect its views of respondents surveyed for the poll, and background information is based on information from various sources that it believes are reliable; however, no representation is made that it is accurate or complete. Whilst reasonable care has been taken in preparing this document, no responsibility or liability is accepted for errors or fact or for any views expressed herein by NOIPolls for actions taken as a result of information provided in this report. Any ratings, forecasts, estimates, opinions or views herein constitute a judgment as at the date of this document. If the date of this document is not current, the views and content may not reflect NOIPolls’ current findings and/or thinking.
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