Abstract:
The Nigerian economy was structurally affected by a series of economic crises beginning with the world wide great economic depression of the 1930s.The 1930s (and specifically 1929-1934) witnessed an economic crisis that led to the British abdicating their responsibilities in the provision of social services, a general thrift, drastic and structural decline in the prices of agricultural produce, poverty, unemployment and so on. The 1980s saw a glut in the global oil industry leading to a substantial fall in Nigeria’s production, export earnings and revenue. The Nigerian government responded first by introducing Austerity Measures, the Counter Trade, and later the Structural Adjustment Program (SAP). The various governments responded through job-cuts, cut-backs in expenditure – all leading to urban job losses, unemployment, worsened economic climate, poverty, etc. The crude oil price again declined precipitously between July, 2008 and January, 2009; whilst Nigeria foreign reserves dropped between June, 2008 and December, 2008. The Nigerian government responded again through huge budget cuts and social spending; further worsening the already terrible economy with different ramifications. The economic crises of the 1930s, 1980s, and early 2000 have important implications on household welfare, income, poverty and consumption levels, general adjustment and struggling mechanisms, and communal survival and cohesion. A potential and sought-after strategy for coping with the crises was slave trade / human trafficking. Some of the desperate measures (adopted by some frustrated Nigerians) included stowing away in ships or taking hazardous and circuitous routes.
DOI: 10.36349/sokotojh.2026.v14i01.005
author/Bashir Maiwada, Rabiu Muhammad Ahmad & Mahmoud Dantsoho
journal/Sokoto JH | Vol. 14, Issue 1 | Dec. 2026
