Madam Hamidat Yusuf na young mother of two children wey dey keep money evri month for ‘esusu’ contribution for di purpose of buying food stuff.
‘Esusu’ na di common name for food contribution for most parts of Southern Nigeria.
“Dis food contribution tin don help me for di past six years to buy foodstuff in bulk for my family. For our family of four – just me, my husband and our two small pikins, e dey good well-well becos di foodstuff fit last us for about six months.,” she tell BBC News Pidgin.
For Ms Ednah Alete wey be civil servant, di food contribution dey help her save and buy food in bulk wey she go take share for her family members at di end of di year.
Alete say “Ah e good well-well becos di small money wey I just dey keep aside evri month dey help me buy foodstuff in bulk wey I go take share for my family. Odawsie I no go fit carry dat kain money at a go, enta market say I dey buy those tins so I like am well.”
Di way di food contribution dey work be say, e get different packages wey pipo fit key into wit trusted coordinators.
Dis packages get listed items and amount wey pesin fit pay evri week or evri month either for six months or one year and at di end, di coordinator go use di total amount go buy di food items and share among pipo wey contribute and dem go get di items wey dey di list of package dem subscribe to.
Many pipo dey do di yearly own and na by December period dem dey go collect all di items before di yuletide festivities.
“E be like a big gift to di family wenever dem call you to come carry your items becos many times e dey surprise me say di small-small money wey I dey contribute evri month na im buy di quantity of food items wey include bag of rice, carton of chicken, a full goat, big basin of garri, you know di tins dem plenti well-well.” Na so Hamidat Yusuf tok.
But wit di present economic condition many pipo no dey gree do di food contribution again.
Edna Alete say di contribution wey she do 12, 500 naira ($7.68) last year don increase to 15,500 ($8) dis year. Di previous year na 10,500 ($6.68) for di same items.
“Di increment dey necessary for di coordinators to fit buy di items as tins don cost for market but no be evri bodi fit pay dat amount so we see say dis year, a lot of pipo don drop out.”
“From di over 100 pipo wey bin do last year, dis year we no reach 45 wen I check di list and a lot of dem sef no fit meet up with di monthly payments regularly,” She add.
Madam Maureen Okoro wey don dey coordinate di food contribution since 2018 say dis year na im she record di lowest number of pipo wey do di food contribution.
“Some of di pipo wey start di food contribution for January don come meet me say make I give dem di money dem don contribute say dem no do again as tins hard.”
“Odas ask make I give dem di food items from di money dem don contribute say food no dey house and dem no fit kontinu again. I no get any choice dan to give dem becos I understand how tins be. Di economy dey hard.”
Anoda coordinator Ifeoma Ossai, di number of pipo wey subscribe dis year reduce well-well.
“From 45 pesins wey bin contribute last year, dis year na only eight pesins gree do di contribution and dem beg me to help dem hold di money becos if e dey dia hand, dem go chop am. Di economy dey very hard.”
She note say di ever increasing cost of foodstuff for market na big challenge wey coordinators dey face dis year but constant communication with di pipo involved dey help.
‘Make Goment reduce import duties and stabilise di economy’
Maureen Okoro blame di increase in price of fuel as di tin wey “automatically affect evritin” for market becos of transportation.
“As transportation increase, di market pipo come add dat cost to di items for market so dem sef go increase. So if goment fit reduce di price of fuel, evri oda tin go reduce.”
She add say import duties na anoda challenge as many pipo no fit go clear dia goods for Port sake of di import duties, “if goment fit look into dat one kwa, e go help becos many of dis tins na import we dey import am and all dis import duties dey also affect di high price we dey see so.”
But Hamidat Yusuf Alete note say e get some cases wia some coordinators don disappear wit di money pipo contribute and at di end dem no get anytin.
As a way to help, President Bola Tinubu dey make effort to reduce di suffering of Nigerians.
Nigeria inflation rate rise to alarming 34.19% in June 2024 – up from 33.95% in May.
Dis na very dangerous signal if goment no quickly do sometin to stop am.
Di president on Thursday approve 70,000 naira ($43) as di new minimum wage for Nigerian workers, wit promise say im go dey review di national minimum wage law evri three years.
E also promise to find ways to assist di private sector and di state goments to pay di money.
Nigeria goment on Tuesday tok say dem don share trucks wey carry 20,000 bags of rice to each of di states for Nigeria including di federal captal territory.
Earlier dis year goment direct di sharing of money to plenty plenty families for di 36 states of Nigeria as part of goment effort to reduce di hardship wey pipo dey face.
For one National Economic Council meeting early dis year presido tok say goment go distribute “50,000 naira uplift grant each to 100,000 families per state for three months”.
Dat na N5 billion per state, N185 billion for di 36 states plus FCT, and N555 billion for di three months.
Weda all dis moves go fit help Nigerians na wetin many still dey wonder.
- Tinubu decision to suspend tax on some imported foods na threat to national economy?
- Why food prices still dey rise even as naira dey strong against dollar?
- Five ways pipo dey take survive cost of living crisis for Ghana
