Nigeria has been ranked unattractive for people looking to move from their home countries, either as a result of persecution, adverse effects of climate change, economic opportunities and or large-scale human rights violations, among others.
This was as the latest Quality of Living Index released by Global Citizen Solutions which rated Nigeria among the poorest countries offering their citizens good quality life.
According to the report; “The Quality of Living Index looks at the overall quality of life a country offers. For the Quality of Living dimension, the goal set was to assess how good life is in the country as a permanent/primary place of residence for expats, retirees, and anyone seeking desirable living conditions abroad”.
It stated that, “six main weights of indicators are included in the index, including SDG (30%), Cost of Living (20%), Freedom in the World (20%), Happiness Score (10%), Environmental Performance (10%), and Migrant Acceptance (10%)”.
The report showed that Nigeria ranked 135th out of 199 countries, with an overall score of 54.1.
The rating took into consideration the availability and cost of day-to-day amenities, such as infrastructure, cost of living, personal and political freedom, environmental quality and attitudes towards foreigners, cumulated against the backdrop of the harsh economic condition in Nigeria and reflected the current cost of living crisis in the country.
The report specifically rated Nigeria low in both the standard of living of the population and pursuit of attainment of the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), just as it ranked the country partially free in terms of protection of personal freedom.
Similarly, Nigeria recorded very low score in environmental quality but, very high in migrants’ acceptance.
Based on the report which score Nigeria 54.1, it showed that the country came African countries such as Namibia (87th), South Africa (88), Tunisia (90th), Ghana (91st), Seychelles (101st), Morocco (103rd), Senegal (106), Botswana (107), Algeria (108) and Cote d’Ivoire at 115th, among others.
Nigeria only topped countries such as Maldives, Libya, China, Brunei, Venezuela, Sierra Leone, Egypt, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Gabon in overall quality of living standards.
However, European countries such as Sweden, Finland, Germany, Denmark and Spain emerged in the top five on the list.
The Report further stated; “The set of orienting questions was: What is the overall level of human development/general population quality of life? How happy is the country’s population? How good is healthcare? How affordable is good healthcare?
“How safe is living in the country? How good is education? How good is it as a travel hub? What is the level of freedom experienced by the country’s population?
“Several thematic areas were prioritized, and research was undertaken to identify reliable data sources with comprehensive country coverage,” the Report stated.
