Nigerians are bracing for a challenging Christmas season as a worsening cash shortage grips the nation, leaving families, small businesses, and communities struggling to meet basic needs.
The financial crisis has exposed systemic weaknesses, particularly in rural areas, where poor banking infrastructure and unreliable mobile networks compound the problem.
Tragically, patients in hospitals are being denied treatment due to a lack of cash, with some women forced to give birth at home after being turned away.
Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), already reeling from the economic downturn, report drastic sales drops as consumers cut back on spending.
Meanwhile, Point-of-Sale (PoS) operators are making brisk business, cashing in on the scarcity by imposing exorbitant withdrawal fees.
Amid claims of upgraded infrastructure, banking apps continue to malfunction, leaving customers frustrated and reliant on physical cash.
Banks have resorted to rationing, capping withdrawals at N10,000 per transaction, further aggravating the crisis.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has vowed to penalize defaulting banks and ensure cash availability.
However, critics argue that the apex bank must tackle the syndicates diverting cash to PoS operators to restore public confidence in the financial system.
The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has described the situation as an economic sabotage.
A food business owner in Ogba, Lagos State, Mrs. Folashade Ogunremi told ThisDay hat businesses have been dull as customer traffic has significantly gone down in the past few weeks.
She explained that some customers have been forced to reduce spending having complained of difficulty in getting cash.
“To worsen the situation, it is increasingly expensive to get the needed cash for the purchase of all the ingredients for the food business especially with the bank apps behaving funny these days,” she said.
