ABUJA (Sundiata Post) – The Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) has said that unplanned public holiday cost $1.88 billion.
A statement issued on Thursday by Tony Ejinkonye, president of the chamber, said: “Public holidays are cherished by most Nigerians as they have the time to do certain things which they may have been putting off, either due to the stress of their job or otherwise. It affords many people the opportunity to spend time with their family, stock up on groceries, catch up on shows, party with friends, or do thorough cleaning of their homes. However, some analyst believe that while business production is likely to be affected by public holidays, the impact can be managed given that these public holidays are planned in advance, thereby allowing businesses to plan appropriately and factor in the possible effects of less work days.
“Due to the number of public holidays celebrated during the course of the year which can have a unplanned effect for business productivity, and in turn, the economy; some analysts have called for the number of holidays to be reduced.
“The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in Nigeria was worth 481.07 billion US dollars in 2015, from an all time high of 568.51 USD Billion in 2014; thus, it is estimated that the effect of one public holiday can cost the country more than 1.88 billion dollars.
“Although, the country’s number of public holidays is in line with many developed countries around the world, highlighting that the number of public holidays may not be the issue at hand in terms of productivity; extended public holiday period can affect productivity, and ultimately revenue generated for businesses and the economy. With the Nigerian economy still struggling with imminent recession, the impact of less productive work days may result in an economic recovery taking much longer and this negative impact is more or less the same for small and medium enterprises in the manufacturing sector, as it would be for larger businesses, in that both will lose production days.”