As the nation’s economy bits unrelentingly, Nigerians are devising different ‘structural adjustment strategies’ to keep body and soul together, the News Agency of Nigeria reports.

A cross-section of respondents, who spoke with NAN in Ibadan on Friday, said they had resorted to rationing their meagre resources amidst other coping mechanisms.

A public servant, Mrs Funmi Alli, said she had taken time to lecture her children on managing available resources and avoiding wastage.

“I have told them we can no longer buy anything unnecessary so that we can reduce cost and save more; this is in addition to reducing our consumption pattern.

“I have also learnt to reduce the consumption of fuel by parking my car somewhere and going about the day’s work, using public transport,” she said.

Alli said she had come to add more sources of income to ensure she survived the biting economy.

An accountant, Mrs Sola Alawode, said her family had adjusted to the situation by making main meals out of what used to be mere snacks.

“I told my children that garri is no longer a snack but a main meal. If you’ve taken it, it means you have taken the meal for that time,” Alawode said.

An entrepreneur, Mr Oluwasegun Abudioke, said: “The best and very realistic way to answer you is just to say that ‘God’s grace has been sufficient’.

“As I speak to you, I’m lying down on an empty stomach with so much hunger. My closest expectations are still two weeks from now but how I will survive before then is a hard nut to crack.”

A food vendor, Mrs Olubisi Adegoke, expressed the regret that she no longer made profits from her business due to incessant increases in prices of goods.

“I had to borrow money from someone to add to what I made yesterday to re-stock for today.

“Each day I keep running at a loss, as I no longer realise the cost price of the inputs I use in preparing food to sell, let alone making profits,” Adegoke said.

Mr Sanmi Olatunde, a worker in an organisation he wouldn’t want to disclose, said he and his family had reduced consumption after reviewing their budget.

“What we normally buy in large quantity has been reduced to small quantity for this period,” he said.

Another entrepreneur, Mrs Motunrayo Aroloye, said: “As we all know, the economic situation of Nigeria has become alarming and a thing of concern. To cope in this economy, some adjustments have to be made.

“Stringent times call for stringent actions. We have cut down on our food purchases and we buy only the absolutely necessary things.

“We spend only on things we need and not on things we want for now.”

A civil servant, Mr Oluwatoyin Diyan, who spoke on the phone from Bayelsa, said: “Transport fare is terrible here. So basically, I prioritise my needs and those of my family.

“Once I receive my income, I focus more on making sure the income takes care of feeding and my transport fare to and fro work.

“Then, any extra is channelled into saving and investments, such as crypto trading and foreign exchange.”

A Christian cleric, Supo Odeleye, said people now managed the economy by trusting in God and cutting down on costs, buying only the needed items.

A respondent with a private organisation in Port Harcourt, Mr Aniekan Ben-Assam, said he relied on God, as ‘the just shall live by faith’.

A trader, Labake Adepoju, said she had never experienced such an economic turbulence in her 56 years of existence.

According to her, the 12 hours she gives to working every day end up with little or nothing to show for it.

“Despite my hard work, I can barely feed my family for the past eight months. I can’t afford basic household and daily needs, such as preferred toiletries.

“Worst still, I find it difficult to buy my teenage girls their sanitary pads,” she lamented.

A businessman, Mr Adekunle Ajakaye, said he could not explain how the constant increment in prices of goods and services had not run him out of business.

Another entrepreneur, Mrs Motunrayo Aroloye, said: “As we all know, the economic situation of Nigeria has become alarming and a thing of concern. To cope in this economy, some adjustments have to be made.

“Stringent times call for stringent actions. We have cut down on our food purchases and we buy only the absolutely necessary things.

“We spend only on things we need and not on things we want for now.”

A civil servant, Mr Oluwatoyin Diyan, who spoke on the phone from Bayelsa, said: “Transport fare is terrible here. So basically, I prioritise my needs and those of my family.

“Once I receive my income, I focus more on making sure the income takes care of feeding and my transport fare to and fro work.

“Then, any extra is channelled into saving and investments, such as crypto trading and foreign exchange.”

A Christian cleric, Supo Odeleye, said people now managed the economy by trusting in God and cutting down on costs, buying only the needed items.

A respondent with a private organisation in Port Harcourt, Mr Aniekan Ben-Assam, said he relied on God, as ‘the just shall live by faith’.

A trader, Labake Adepoju, said she had never experienced such an economic turbulence in her 56 years of existence.

According to her, the 12 hours she gives to working every day end up with little or nothing to show for it.

“Despite my hard work, I can barely feed my family for the past eight months. I can’t afford basic household and daily needs, such as preferred toiletries.

“Worst still, I find it difficult to buy my teenage girls their sanitary pads,” she lamented.

A businessman, Mr Adekunle Ajakaye, said he could not explain how the constant increment in prices of goods and services had not run him out of business.