From health to gender, security, agriculture, extractives and other sectors, Dataphyte covered all the pertinent events that unfolded in the country in 2021 and “made it make sense” for Nigerians, bringing deeper insights into the issues.
Dataphyte did extensive data-driven reporting on the 2019 Audit report released in 2021, Nigeria’s 2022 budget, the health sector, economic issues like unemployment and inflation, the many government policies and how it affects citizens, and so much more.
Below is a recap of the stories you found most interesting in 2021.
#2022 Budget: N3,453 Per Capita for the Medical Care of Every Nigerian in 2022
During his 2022 budget speech, President Buhari stated that allocations to the Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) were guided by the strategic objectives of the 2021-2025 National Development Plan, which of them is enabling a healthy populace.
Dataphyte looked at the amount allocated to the Federal Ministry of Health to understand how much the government has proposed for the medical care of every citizen, and found that medical care in 2022 is pegged at N3,453 Per Capita. READ MORE
15 Faults with the Bill to Establish Nigerian Pesticide Council – Group
In a press release, the Alliance for Action on Pesticide (AAPN) raised a concern about a Bill for the establishment of a Nigerian Pesticide Council.
Dataphyte in its review of the Bill revealed 15 faults which include the fact that the Bill did not put into consideration public health or environmental safety. Also, the Bill allows its council members to accept gifts. This may open the system up to corruption and compromise of the health and safety of Nigerians. READ MORE
2019 Audit Report: Lifted into Thin Air: NNPC Failed to Account for 104 Million Barrels of Domestic Crude Oil Lifted in 2019
The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) made the headlines several times in 2021, this time it was for failing to account for 104 million barrels of crude oil.
In this report, Dataphyte revealed how 97.4% of the total domestic crude the NNPC lifted in 2019 vanished into thin air as the corporation could not account for it. For context, using the cost of a barrel of crude in 2019, the unaccounted million barrels of crude is valued at N2.112 trillion. READ MORE
Tackling malaria in Nigeria: Infections Increase by 16%, Death Rate Decreases by 15%
Nigeria recorded the highest cases of infections and deaths from malaria, a life-threatening disease contracted through mosquito bites.
A review of the data from the World Health Organisation (WHO) showed that malaria infections in Nigeria rose from 52.5 million to 60.9 million between 2015 and 2019. However, deaths resulting from malaria decreased from 112,874 to 95,802 within the period.
That is a 16% increase in infections and 15% decrease in the death rate within the five year period. READ MORE
Supplementary Budget: NASS Approves N45 billion to sort Salary-issues of Tertiary Institutions
Majority of the strikes embarked upon by the staff unions of tertiary institutions in Nigeria have been tied to issues of wages.
This story examines the N45 billion that was approved by the National Assembly from the supplementary budget to deal with salary related issues and other pressing needs of workers of tertiary institutions. READ MORE
Explainer: How Nigeria Lost its Place in the Top 10 Countries to Invest in Africa
The Rand Merchant Bank released its report on the best countries to invest in Africa and Nigeria dropped from its second place position in 2014 to fourteen in 2021.
In a detailed piece, Dataphyte explained the reasons why the giant of Africa fell from its lofty heights with respect to the best countries to invest in Africa. READ MORE
Explainer: Nigeria’s 7.5% VAT for Social Media Ads May Not Equate Gagging Voices but It Scores High on the Insensitivity Scale
Starting from January 1, 2022, Nigerians will pay 7.5% Value Added Tax (VAT) on Facebook and Instagram adverts.
The decision elicited many reactions, especially on social media with many arguing that VAT charge may gag freedom of expression, limit the use of the platform and affect businesses that leverage these social media platforms for growth.
However, in this report, Dataphyte explained that while it does not quite limit freedoms, the introduction of VAT on Facebook and Instagram ads at a time when businesses, big and small are facing unfavourable economic conditions appears insensitive. READ MORE
In Nigeria, Malaria Killed 155 Nigerians for every Coronavirus Death in 2020
Globally, COVID-19 took many lives in 2020. While Nigeria did not record so many death cases compared to countries like the USA, UK and many others, Malaria claimed almost 20,000 lives in 2020 alone.
The number of deaths resulting from malaria that Nigeria recorded in 2020 stood at 199,689, an increase of 6.5% from the 187,437 deaths recorded in the previous year. The number of cases also increased by 6.8%. READ MORE
5 Benefits of Compressed Natural Gas as an Alternative Fuel for Cars In Nigeria
Although vehicles can use natural gas as either a liquid or a gas, most vehicles use the gaseous form, compressed to about 218 kg/cm2.
Sometime in 2020, the Federal Government rolled out its National Gas Expansion Program (NGEP), which involves the conversion of fuel-powered cars and generators from petrol to gas.
In this piece, Dataphyte outlined five benefits of Nigeria implementing compressed natural gas as an alternative fuel for automobiles. READ MORE
Much Ado about Subsidy: What it Means and Why Nigerians Should Care
The topic of subsidy removal was one of the widely debated issues in the country this year as the Buhari led administration announced plans to remove petroleum subsidies from 2022.
The Federal Government then came up with the idea of paying the sum of N5000 transport grant to mitigate the effects of subsidy removal on the poorest Nigerians.
This development elicited different reactions across the country, with some for and against the government’s decision.
Dataphyte weighed in on the conversation, explaining subsidy, the pros and cons of its removal and why Nigerians should care. READ MORE
Analysis: Why Nigeria Must Tackle Food, Essential Commodities Inflation before 2022
In 2021, it was almost difficult for Nigerians to buy anything from the market, no thanks to the country’s two-digit inflation figure.
On top of this, the government announced it will remove the fuel subsidy in 2022. With the country’s current inflation rate, coupled with the high poverty and unemployment rate and other challenges that have made living difficult for many Nigerians, one can easily tell what lies ahead for an average Nigerian in the new year.
Putting all of these together, Dataphyte highlights some policies the government can consider to at least make life easy for the citizens.
Whistleblower Appeals to President Buhari over Victimization for Exposing Corruption
In 2016, President Buhari led administration introduced the Whistleblowing policy, inviting citizens to join in the fight against corruption.
Dataphyte spotlights the story of Ameh Joseph Eche, a whistleblower who continues to suffer for responding to the government’s call for citizen’s partnership by blowing the whistle on corruption. READ MORE
Nigeria’s Correctional Centres are Overcrowded by 37% but 7 out of 10 inmates are awaiting trial
The Nigerian Correctional Service (NCS) data on the Summary of Inmate Population by Convict and Persons Awaiting Trial as of October 4th 2021 revealed that the facilities hold 37% more inmates than it is designed to. The occupancy rate of the NCS stands at 137%.
Also, data revealed that a large number of the inmates in the facility are awaiting trial. Out of the 70,056 inmates at the facility, only 19,234 inmates have been convicted, accounting for 27% of the total, while 50,822 representing 73% are awaiting trial. That means that at least 7 out of 10 Nigerian prison inmates are serving time without being convicted. READ MORE
Kebbi State’s 87% IGR Growth Rate Tops Other States in 2020
While most of the states recorded a decline in their Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) in 2020, Kebbi and a few other states saw an increase in theirs.
Particularly, the IGR of Kebbi state jumped from N7.37 billion in 2019 to N13.78 billion in 2020, an increase of 87%. Dataphyte spotlights states with increased IGRs. READ MORE
2022 Budget: Nigeria’s Proposed Budget is N2.41 trillion More than it Projected
Using the Medium Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategic Paper (MTEF/FSP), the government projected that the budget for the 2022 fiscal year will be N13.98 trillion. But when the 2022 proposed budget was presented, it was N2.41 trillion more than the projected figure.
The MTEF projected planned expenditure for recurrent (non-debt) expenditure for 2022 was N6.21 trillion. However, the proposed budget submitted for approval has a recurrent expenditure of N6.83 trillion. The projected capital expenditure in the MTEF was pegged at N3.616 trillion, meanwhile, the 2022 proposed budget had a capital expenditure of N4.89 trillion.
Bottom line is Nigeria overshot its own projections but not necessarily in a beneficial way. READ MORE
Three Things to Know About the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA)
In August 2021, Nigeria signed the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) into law. Before signing the bill, there were a lot of concerns over the solvency of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), especially as it failed to record profit and the corporation’s revenue accounted for a part of the federal government’s revenue.
In this report, Dataphyte explained important sections of the Act. READ MORE
In Ebonyi, Multi-million Naira Teachers’ Quarters Projects Abandoned, Non-existent
In December, Dataphyte visited six project locations in Ebonyi state using the contract data published on the State’s Bureau of Public Procurement Open Contracting portal.
Dataphyte discovered that the Teachers’ Quarters project in about 40 select schools across the State were either abandoned or never existed even though the Ebonyi State government budgeted N20 million each in 2018 for the projects. READ MORE
Kano-Maradi Line: What’s Shaping Nigeria’s Infrastructural Choice, Politics or Economics?
The Federal Government of Nigeria signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Mota-Engil Group in January 2021 to construct $1.959 billion Kano-Maradi Standard Gauge Railway lines.
From the North to the Southern part of the country, the decision generated a lot of dialogue in the national sphere, with some vehemently condemning the decision and others supporting it.
Amidst the debate as to whether the government should dispense that amount to construct a railway line through Kano-Maradi, Dataphyte provided data-driven insight into whether the choice of the government’s major infrastructural investment was really a political one or an economic decision. READ MORE
Is a 50% Increase in Budget Allocation Enough to Revive Nigeria’s Education Sector?
President Buhari promised to increase the budgetary allocation to education by 50% in 2023 during the Global Education Summit in London, United Kingdom.
While the sector needs major reforms and investments, questions arose as to if this was a mere promise by the President to score cheap political points and if the 50% increase in budgetary allocation to education would revive the sector?
Dataphyte gave perspective to the questions in this report. READ MORE