Tony Ejinkonye, president, Abuja Chamber of Commerce Industry (ACCI), has put the current economic loss as a result of the holiday extension at the cost of $1.88 billion, stating that extended public holiday period can affect productivity, while resulting in slow down of economic activities.
Ejinkonye said in a statement, “The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in Nigeria was worth $481.07 billion in 2015, from an all-time high of $568.51 billion in 2014; thus, it is estimated that the effect of one public holiday can cost the country more than $1.88 billion.
“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 analyst have called for the number of holidays to be reduced.
“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.”
Meanwhile, some analysts 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.
Although, the country’s number of public holidays is in line with many developed countries, 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.
