N400 Per Dollar...another BIG Change! III

From the previous post,we made it abundantly clear that the problem is with us the citizens.We could make things happen irrespective of the person in power.The Dollar problem is an economic problem not political.Today,we are discussing the solutions Insha Allah.
What can We do About it???
The answer to the question is pretty simple.But,like I said in the previous post,it somewhat lengthy.However,I shall just be brushing through them.
There is a 3-steps solution to our economic problems.They are the DEFINITION,PLANNING AND EXECUTION steps.

Definition

This is the first step in every major project in life.We need to first of all get it right in terms of what we need,to what extent we want to go and when we want it done.In this case of ours - curtailing the fall of the Naira and adding value to it.
We want the Naira to stabilize against the Dollar,we would want to go as far as making the Naira equal to the Dollar (for now) and we want it done ASAP...latest,by the year 2020.

Planning

During the planning step,our line of action shall be guided by the definition we have made above.Stabilizing the Naira require us to reduce,drastically,our rate of importation to only those things we don't produce at all in the country.
For instance,the importation of staple foods like rice,beans,fish,chicken among other stuffs we produce in the country should be gradually discouraged.This can be done by US the citizens NOT the government.All we gotta do is to buy more of those products that are produced within the country DESPITE their flaws.
In that way,we would be putting more money into the hands of our local producers to produce more,it would also serve as an inducement to local investors to put more money into the Economy.It would also translate to employment generation for so many and a mass emigration back to farm to produce more food and raw materials for such industries as the textile industries!
This is why I'm so happy when the present regime promised to focus on the Agricultural sector as a savior of our economy.Let them meet you and I in the place,don't wait on the government...I personally believe more on the might of the citizenry than that of the government and that is because,the government,to me,is a mere reflection of the people of a country.If the people are good,the country would be,(we are good,aren't we?) and where the reverse is the case,please,don't expect Saints to rule in the city of Devils!
If we,the people would change our taste,place more value on what are made in Nigeria over those from foreign lands,the Government has no choice but to follow suit!After all,they'll need our votes to stay in power,won't they?If we make a strong statement with OUR ACTIONS AND CHANGE OF TASTE,they would listen and obey!
Another cool thing about the 'change' thing is that with less importation going on,less Naira would have to go abroad,therefore,gradually,less Naira would be available in the international market which means scarcity of the Naira.According to the Supply rule,the lower the Supply,the higher the price!
Nigerians must be encouraged to invest more in the local economy so that production can be increased and consequently,the Naira would gain value not only against the Dollar,but,other major currencies like the British Pound and the Euro!This encouragement comes ONLY from buying more of Naija.Now,the question is,how many of us are patriotic enough to 'change' our taste for the sake of improving our economy...how many???

Execution

Execution is pretty easy once we are able to scale through the planning stage successfully.Some might argue that execution is in fact the problem.We have been made to understand that there have been so many well planned and well articulated blueprints that have been made over the years,but,lack of political will to execute them has been the problem.
While I agree that this is true,I may also wanna argue that some of those blueprints were done without considering the 'Nigerian' factor.
Most of those that were involved in the making of blueprints hardly leave the comfort of their well furnished and air-conditioned offices to have direct contact with those they are making the plans for.Now,tell me,what do you expect of such think tanks...what type of plans do you think they can come up with???
This is the major reason why most of those that managed to come out for execution fail so woefully...the plans are alien to the Nigerian society and those blueprints that never left the planning stage,believe it or not,they were not actually needed,the organization and the whole process of making the blueprint were merely to serve as a 'dummy' to us...they were not meant to be implemented but to douse a possible revolt that was perceived that's all!Oh,how many times over have we fallen for this same old trick of our politicians!
This plans as proposed can only work if we as Nigerians are ready to move forward and stop wasting time on cheap political rantings.If we truly want to make this country work,we need to start working on the 'change' of our taste by buying more of Naija products so as to encourage local producers and manufacturers and at the same time,we would be putting more value on the Naira by making it stay back home!So,stop putting money on importation business,but, on exportation.I rest my case on this matter for now!Thanks for your time!
God Bless Nigeria and Nigerians!!
Ameen!!!   

N400 Per Dollar...another BIG Change! II

If you had missed the first part of this write up,I'll STRONGLY suggest you go read it up before you read this post.You should see a post with a similar title on the blog.Having said that,it's time to continue from where we stopped.
BREAKING NEWS! Naira has Appreciated by N6 in the Parallel Market!

I woke up to the news that the Naira appreciated against the Dollar,isn't that wonderful?This goes a long way to buttress the point that the Federal Government is trying to make by insisting on the N199/$ mark.
You see,there's a saying in Yoruba that goes thus:"Nani-nani,oun a ba ni lan nani". It literally means that you should value and promote what you have so that others would value it too!
In a situation whereby someone works in Nigerian economy and refused to be paid in Naira but Dollars is highly unacceptable!But,unfortunately,it has happened in Nigeria on several occasions...I heard that a certain construction company who had been a regular contracting firm in Nigeria (name withheld) gets paid in terms of CRUDE OIL, can you just imagine?!
So,when people start talking about how Buhari has been inactive and how innocent or guilty Jonathan has been,I cannot help but to laugh and marvel.The Dollar palava is NOT a political matter but an economic one.True,the government has a large influence on the economy but not as much as we are made to believe.
To so many,the Federal Government is the Alpha and Omega of all that happens in the country,especially the economic sector.To the majority,the only person that can better the economy is the government,no one else can do a thing about it,how true is this?
There's a BIG Difference between Your Personal Finance and Government Finance
When we talk of the Economy,people start ranting about government policies.When we talk of rise in crime rate,it's the government,talk of unemployment,it is the government should do something about it...according to a comedian,it has come to a level that people are beginning to think that the government should be responsible for the high divorce rate in the country! Haba!
What you earn,how you earn it and how you spend or manage what you earn has NOTHING to do with the government...it's solely your responsibility!So,if you are not faring well financially,it's neither the government nor the Nigerian economy that's at fault,YOU are at fault!
There are so many things that you need to learn and do about the way you earn and spend.You must be ready to think and act like a rich man if you want to be rich...for more info,I'll suggest you join therichkidstreasurebox.com 
It's a social networking site for Investors and Entrepreneurs.Go join them,registration is free.There's a welcome package that'll help you understand the basis of what I call Personal Finance.This is a must for all that are not getting it right financially...goodluck!
A Country is as rich as the Citizens of the Country

Nigeria is a RICH country considering the so many mineral riches that are found within her territory.But, of what use are the riches of a country when her citizens are poor?I read a guy's post on facebook in which he said that there are 38 solid minerals in the world and 25 of them can be found in Nigeria!Therefore,the country is rich...very rich!But,how rich are Nigerians???
Most Nigerians are raised and trained to go to school,graduate and start looking for a job.Very few are trained to do business.This is the root cause of the widespread poverty in Nigeria.Since we are trained to seek for jobs,we find it highly ridiculous to invest our savings.What we do mostly with our savings is to either build a house,marry a wife or two...or more,some seek out higher certificate of learning so as to get promoted at work.There are some that has no appetite for savings,they just collect their salaries,settle the bills and squander the rest in a beer parlor or pepper soup joint!
This has been the case in Nigeria and unfortunately is still the psyche of most Nigerian youths.This,also,is the main reason why Nigerians are poor.The Economy has been grossly mismanaged by the past regimes,so,has been the government companies that have proved to be the largest employer of labor.Their collapse (government companies like the Railway Corporation)  has led to a massive unemployment rate.
Since Nigeria mainly consist of Employee minded youths and very few entrepreneurs,things are getting increasingly difficult with so many coming out of the Universities without a job on sight.Everyone is forced to jump at whatever means of income luck throws at them GRATEFULLY!
Creativity and Innovation is a long lost asset of Nigerian youths who have turned to scavengers of labor.Just imagine a Master Degree holder begging to be employed as a gatekeeper!It is that bad!!!
What Can we do About It?
Ah! That question has a very long answer...it's so long that I'll suggest we treat it tomorrow,Okay?Please,keep it a date tomorrow.Thanks for your time!

N400 Per Dollar...another BIG Change!

So many have had their say about the current steep upward rise of the Dollar against our dear Naira.As expected,most of the comments have been negative.Some have gone as far as saying that the country is already a failed state.God forbid!
Now,let's be very sincere with ourselves,the economic downturn is NOT the fault of Buhari...it's not TOTALLY that of the past regimes either.Guys,make we no fool ourselves,the problem is more of ours the citizens than our leaders!
How Many Made in Nigeria Products do you Use?
Like I used to say,Nigerians are yet to start seeing themselves as Nigerians.As such,we don't really care about what happens to Nigeria so long we live comfortably.Very few of us truly care about National matters.This is why most of us would say 'Devalue the Naira' even when it's quite obvious that the devaluation would only lead to inflation.We don't care,so long we are not directly affected. This is sad!
What we don't know is that the current economic broo-hoo-waha we find ourselves today is as a result of our careless attitude towards our dear country Nigeria.We want the best of services and products which is normal.But,the problem is that the origin and source of the service/product you use matters.It involves the exchange of currencies.It's all about the normal demand & supply curves...the higher the price,the lower the demand and vice versa.
When you buy foreign products,our Naira flies out of the country to pay for it but when you buy a Nigerian product,the Naira stays at home and improves our overall economic status.In other words,the more often we buy foreign products/services,the more often Naira has to travel oversees...now,the problem is that we Nigerians buy foreign products much more often than we should,hence,the Naira travels out so often that other countries are becoming wary of it.
When you see something too often,you seem to loose taste for it,hence,you treat it with less respect and sometimes downgrade it...that's exactly what's happening to the Naira.
Buy Nigerian Products even if the are Inferior!
I know that some products cannot be produced in Nigeria because we lack the required technology or raw materials,yes,but,can't we limit our importation to those and as a matter of fact strive to extend the number of products/service we produce???Naira needs to stay at home the more so that people out there would miss it and treat it with more respect.
There was a time in this country that the Naira was more valuable than the Dollar so much that Americans would be glad to be paid in Naira!We can bring back those glorious days...together,we can do it and it's easy to do it.
All we have to do is to resolve to buy more Nigerian products as against foreign products even when the Nigerian product is inferior to its foreign counterparts.Buy it Nigerian to keep Nigerians employed and keep the Naira indoors!Buy the products and suggest to the producers how they can make better products...now,that's how to grow an economy...the citizens must be ready to support their country by patronizing products made in their country.You would NEVER see an average American or British citizens patronizing other country's products while there's a local producer of the same product,why can't we do that too??? 
Consumers are the Kings...we are the Kings & Queens!
An open secret is that Traders,Merchants and the Business men sell what WE WANT TO BUY NOT WHAT THEY WANT SELL!

No Merchant would like to display products without buyers,so,they do market researches to find out what's trending,what's selling before they go to buy.Since in Nigeria,what sells are foreign products,Marketers and Merchants are forced to provide foreign goods.
Should we,the consumers...the buyers decide to change our taste today and patronize Nigerian products despite their numerous flaws,the Merchants and Marketers are trendy to follow suit by providing us with more Nigerian products!
                                                                                                               ....to be continued!