General
Nigerian Consumer Sentiment Suffers Sharp Decline
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The latest report from Nielsen West Africa has disclosed that consumer sentiment in Nigeria suffered a sharp decline in the second quarter of 2020.
In the Nielsen Consumer Confidence Index (CCI), it was stated that Nigeria’s index decreased by 14 points to 108, while Ghana, its West African brother, reported a substantial decrease of 15 points to 104.
The declines in the two West Africa giants were attributed to the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic, which caused the two countries to declared lockdowns as part of efforts to stop the spread of the virus.
This consequently caused loss in the economy and forced some companies to lay off some of their employees, while citizens were unable to purchase things they used to.
According to the report, in Q2 2020, Nigerian job prospects declined with less than half viewing them as excellent or good, a 14-point drop from the previous quarter.
Nigerians’ sentiment around the state of their personal finances also showed a decline with 59 percent who think they will be excellent or good over the next year, having decreased 19 points from the previous quarter.
Immediate-spending intentions also declined, with only a third of the respondents saying “now is a good or excellent time to purchase” what they want or need, a 14-point drop from the previous quarter.
In terms of whether Nigerians have spare cash to spend, 32 percent said yes, versus 50 percent in the previous quarter.
An analysis of Nigerians spending priorities, once they have met their essential living expenses, it was observed that 81 percent said they would put their spare cash into savings, 73 percent said home improvements and decorating and 66 percent would invest in shares/mutual funds.
Furthermore, 76 percent of Nigerians said they had changed their spending to save on household expenses compared to this time last year. To reduce expenses, 67 percent said they had delayed the replacement of major household items (a 10-point increase on the previous quarter).
In addition, 64 percent said they would spend less on new clothes and 56 percent said less out of home entertainment – both of which are understandable given ongoing restricted living patterns.
In the next 12 months, Nigerians said their top concern would be attaining a work/life balance (31 percent), which has seen the biggest increase of eight points compared to the previous quarter. This is followed by increasing food prices (23 percent) and concerns over the economy (19 percent).
Commenting on the consumer sentiment for Nigeria, the Managing Director of Nielsen Nigeria, Mr Ged Nooy, stated that, “As Africa’s largest economy and the largest exporter of oil, Nigeria’s economy was already under immense pressure before the COVID-19 lockdown due to the collapse in international oil prices.
“Based on the additional economic pressure as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, Nigeria, therefore, instituted a fairly early easing of its 5-week lockdown in early May due to the adverse financial effects on its economy and population.”
Elaborating on these results, Mr Nooy submitted that, “Economic recovery has been sluggish and will remain severely constricted due to the oil price crash amidst and beyond the pandemic.
“For Nigeria’s manufacturing and retail sectors to rebound will require a sharp focus, as trade opportunities and execution remains severely constrained, having further deteriorated during the partially restricted living period.”
Looking at Ghana’s performance, its citizens have significantly dropped their outlook around their job prospects, with less than half (45 percent) saying they will be good or excellent in the next 12 months – a 16-point decrease from the previous quarter.
In terms of the state of their personal finances over the next 12 months, 60 percent say they are excellent or good, again a substantial 16-point drop from the previous quarter.
Ghanaians propensity to purchase has also seen a considerable decrease quarter on quarter, with the number of those who think now is a good or excellent time to purchase what they want or need drop from 52 percent to 33 percent in the second quarter.
Only 43 percent of Ghanaians say they have spare cash, down 13 points from the previous quarter. Once they meet their essential living expenses, the highest number of consumers (74 percent) put their spare cash into savings, followed by 73 percent on home improvements/decorating and 56 percent who would invest in stocks and mutual funds.
One of the most significant drops in discretionary spending is on holidays down from 58 percent to 27 percent – a clear indicator of consumers’ mindset shift away from non-essential services and their desire to avoid unnecessary travel.
When asked whether they had changed their spending to save on household expenses compared to this time last year, 75 percent said yes, up seven points from the previous quarter.
To reduce expenses, 53 percent said they spent less on new clothes, 52 percent on out of home entertainment, with the same figure deferring on the replacement of major household items.
When looking at the real-life factors that are affecting their outlook, the top consumer concerns over the next 12 months were increasing food prices (29 percent), followed by work/life balance (23 percent) and their children’s education (22 percent).
Yannick Nkembe, Market Lead for Nielsen West Africa Expanded Market, noted that, “The latest consumer sentiments reflect the market reality.
“With the global pandemic affecting the economy and causing general uncertainty all around, consumers have readjusted their confidence levels and are also more cautious with their spend.”
Nkembe added that, “Ghana has previously experienced strong business prospects and with the relatively earlier easing of restrictions to stimulate its economy, recovery in Ghana is likely to rebound sooner.
“We expect consumers to revert to previous consumption behaviours, although some of their attitudes will have fundamentally or permanently changed post the pandemic.”
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
A report released by Spotify has revealed that in 2024, Apostle Femi Lazarus was the most streamed podcast on its platform, closely followed by Motivation Daily by Motiversity.
Podcasts are one of Africa’s favourite ways to tell stories. With almost 4 billion minutes of podcast audio played in Sub-Saharan Africa in 2024, the continent’s appetite for this content is loud and clear.
South Africa, Nigeria, and Kenya listened to the most shows this year, with South Africa contributing over 2 billion minutes. If you started playing podcasts on one device today, it would make for about 30 centuries of listening.
“The numbers don’t lie. Podcasting is here to stay because it lets creators take control of their narratives and tell these stories on their terms while bringing their community along for the journey,” the Sub-Saharan Africa Podcast Manager for Spotify, Ncebakazi Manzi, stated.
Motivational shows around issues like managing finances, relationships, personal goals and health remain popular across the three leading countries. Shows like “The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett”, “Motivation Daily by Motiversity” and “The Success Addicted Podcast” have attracted listeners who want to get their lives in order and learn from the stories of inspirational people.
Audiences in Nigeria and South Africa embrace shows about spirituality. “Christian Motivation” had one of the most shared episodes in South Africa while “Apostle Joshua Selman” maintained his popularity in Nigeria for another year. As the continent’s second-largest podcast market, Nigeria listened to 700 million minutes in 2024 and it created half of the new shows published in Sub-Saharan Africa this year.
Even though spirituality dominated Nigeria’s top charts, the continued popularity of shows like “I Said What I Said” and “The HonestBunch Podcast” tell us that listeners also want conversation-style shows. Listeners in Kenya and South Africa also showed an affinity toward these shows.
A good laugh with friends
The “ShxtsnGigs” podcast, an opinion show hosted by two best friends James and Fuhad, tapped into audiences’ hunger for conversational shows. The humorous podcast has made its way to the top charts in six of the top 10 podcast-playing African countries. In Kenya, The 97s Podcast has been inspired by this approach where funny and frank chats between hosts Trevor, Frank and Dante have led the podcast to take the number-one spot in the country for the first time.
Kenya’s broader listening data shows that relationships are a meaningful taking point. Seven of the 10 most shared episodes in the country discuss love, sex lives and dating. Julia Gaitho’s “So This Is Love” holds three out of the top five most shared podcast episodes in the country. Her interviews resonated because she draws lessons from her guest’s stories about lost lovers.
Some listeners just wanted to laugh through the pain. Ensemble shows like “Mic Cheque Podcast” and “The Sandwich Podcast” made Kenyans feel like they were hanging out with a close circle of friends. When difficult topics come up, moments of infectious laughter help lighten the mood.
Women creators like Murugi Munyi, Julia Gaitho, Sharon Machira and Lydia K.M. take this comedic approach to a new level on shows like “The Messy Inbetween” and ‘It’s Related, I Promise’. This genre contributed heavily to the country’s 400 million podcast minutes streamed in 2024.
Below are the most streamed and shared podcasts for the year;
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TOP STREAMED PODCASTS IN SOUTH AFRICA |
TOP STREAMED PODCASTS IN NIGERIA |
TOP STREAMED PODCASTS IN KENYA |
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2. Motivation Daily by Motiversity 3. Success Addicted Podcast with the voice of Earl Nightingale ; Napoleon Hill ; Jim Rohn and many more |
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TOP SHARED PODCAST EPISODES IN SOUTH AFRICA |
TOP SHARED PODCAST EPISODES IN KENYA |
TOP SHARED PODCAST EPISODES IN NIGERIA |
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By Dipo Olowookere
A $15 million debt facility has been obtained by Watt Renewable Corporation from the AfriGreen Debt Impact Fund to finance hybrid solar power plants to be built and operated by the former, especially in Nigeria.
WATT intends to use the projects to serve commercial and industrial clients in Nigeria, particularly in the telecommunication and financial services sectors.
By integrating solar hybrid solutions, the firm aims to significantly reduce diesel consumption and CO2 emissions, enabling its clients to achieve substantial energy cost savings while promoting environmental sustainability.
As a pioneer in renewable energy solutions, WATT continues to drive innovation in Nigeria’s energy sector.
The company’s robust roll-out plan includes deploying hundreds of hybrid solar power sites nationwide to meet the growing energy demands of commercial & industrial clients.
This strategic expansion aligns with WATT’s vision to revolutionize energy access across Africa, enabling sustainable development and reducing reliance on fossil fuels.
The funds from AfriGreen provide the critical capital needed to accelerate WATT’s ambitious projects, strengthening its market position and empowering businesses with reliable and affordable energy solutions.
Business Post gathered that to mitigate the currency risk for WATT in the event of devaluation of the Nigerian Naira, AfriGreen is offering a local currency facility that matches the payment structure of the power purchase agreements.
“We are thrilled to partner with AFRIGREEN on this transformative journey to expand reliable and sustainable energy solutions across Africa.
“With this support, it enables us to accelerate our shared mission of providing hybrid solar power to businesses, reducing carbon emissions, and supporting economic growth while enhancing energy security for our clients,” the Managing Director of WATT, Mr Oluwole Eweje, said.
“We are delighted to support WATT in rolling out hundreds of hybrid sites across the country.
“This represents another key transaction for AFRIGREEN in Nigeria. The combination of high energy prices, good solar irradiation, and strong demand from industrial and commercial energy users makes this market particularly attractive for companies like WATT.
“By leveraging these favourable market conditions alongside WATT’s exceptional operational performance and a well-structured financing solution, we are setting the stage for a strong and lasting business partnership,” the Managing Director of AfriGreen, Mr Alexandre Gilles, stated.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has denied issuing a directive that gas supply to power generating companies (GenCos) be halted.
In a statement on Wednesday, the authority also denied instructing wholesale gas suppliers to stop further supply of gas to companies due to failure in payment obligations.
The NMDPRA described reports stating that it has directed the stoppage of gas supply to GenCos over N2 trillion debt as “false and completely unfounded”.
“It has absolutely no bearing on the information shared at a recent stakeholders’ engagement held in Lagos between the Authority, the OPTS, IPPG and other stakeholders in the oil and gas industry,” the NMDPRA said.
“The purpose of the engagement was to sensitise stakeholders on the requirements, opportunities and benefits associated with the implementation of the wholesale supply license as provided by sections 142 and 197 of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021.
“It was a follow-up to an earlier stakeholder engagement held at the NMDPRA corporate headquarters in Abuja on November 27, 2024.
“The Authority wishes to reassure all our stakeholders and indeed the general public that at no time was the false statement made at that event and anywhere else, and are advised to completely disregard the publication as every effort is being made to ensure that the supply and distribution of natural gas and petroleum products to end users is seamless and unabated as we head into the festive season and indeed all through the coming year 2025.”
Recall that Nigeria’s national grid experienced another collapse on Wednesday, the 11th time in 2024 as Gencos couldn’t generate enough power, compounding issues facing the Nigerian power sector.
This was the first time in over a month as the last time the nation witnessed a nationwide shutdown in electricity supply was on November 7, 2024.
Before then, the country was experiencing an incessant collapse of the grid, which prompted the federal government to set up a team to address the issue.
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