kenny714433:
Do the calculations

So Nigeria currency was once stronger than dollar... Nigeria leaders have really mess up this country. Maybe oil discovery was a curse to Nigeria

The flight was much more expensive then than now. It was like flying with over USD20,000 at an exchange rate of 1 Naira to USD$ 0.75.

How many Nigerians could afford it then?

chatinent:
It's so sad what Nigeria has become. Can the poor be rich?

it is cheaper now compared to then. At that time #1 was more a dollar. But let's assume #1 to 1 dollar, it will be 17500 dollar. I'm not sure flight ticket to Newyork right now is up to that amount.

It's the same price no difference. At the time of this article your grand parents salary were in Kobo

From my observation, this was a long time ago and such fare was a huge sum of money. Imagine having #17k year back when a car price was about #5k

I just laugh in Spanish when I see these pictures...count on your fingers how many family members you knew then that had the funds to travel? Now everyone can ...even those that can barely read

chatinent:

Convert this amount to dollar’s rate that year and multiply by 1200 naira today . You will find out , it might be cheaper now or about the same.

I remember in 2012, my sister inlaw help me buy my ticket from Lagos to Benin one way. It cost approximately $100 equivalent. I paid her in America dollars .
Today for the same route, the rates are usually around 90k to 120k which is still about $100 depending on how far back you booked the flight or what airline you are using.

When we had sense ba?

mariahAngel:
In what year was this?
It was still very expensive in my opinion.

I dare say it is easier to be rich (or at least well off) now than before, because the opportunities that are available now were not in those days.

Will you keep kwayet....what opportunities...all this indomie.. children...

In canada, a house of 30,000 CAD in 1970 is now 1million CAD in 2024

oneMalik:
How much was peugeot-504 then ? and how many people has it ?

so forget your fvckin naira to dollar nonsense .

You're obviously a kid, comparing Nigeria's economy of d 70s to d depressed economy of today. We were a net exporter in d 70s n early 80s. Nigerians didn't need visa to travel to UK n many European countries. Companies were enticing graduates with cars in their final year to work with them. UAE begged Nigeria for loan under obj in d late 70s. D university teaching hospital, Ibadan was d official family hospital of d royal family of Saudi Arabia. We had PAN in kd, Volks in Lagos, Anamco in Anambra, all churning out vehicles which Nigerians, including d govt patronised. Naira was stronger than d dollar. Delta steel company was rolling out steel n ajaokuta steel was getting ready to roll out steel, d industrial revolution was about kicking off. Where do u think d name African giant came from? D IMF n dumb leaders ruined d economy
Educate yourself young man n stop sounding ignorant.

onadana:



Will you keep kwayet....what opportunities...all this indomie.. children...

Those who choose not to see opportunities will never see them.
That is all I have to say to you.

aoaachives:



Name few of those opportunities maybe we can learn from it.

candygist:


Pls expose us to such opportunity and if it's something we can learn and apply.

Look into technology. It is vast.
Just find your niche.

tonicyril:
So how much was the average salary and minimum wage then...find that out and let do the percentage if they are on par or not..

That is when we can know Wat to say

No be to dey show us 17k for flight as if 20k was the minimum wage then

See the officer's uniform then vintage comrade shirt and shorts. Most average workers then were paid between #300 and #2000 so it was still very very expensive

tonicyril:
its not about conversion to dollar or whatever sir..

It's about how many months do u have to work to save up for the flight fee..then and now

If you don't see the relationship between naira/dollars rate, then we shouldn't be having this conversation.

Do I need to educate you how dollar rate is what matters most in this situation where we don't know the year in question?

If this photo was taken at a time when minimum wage was worth 250 dollars, then automatically, the number of minimum wage that can afford that is automatically less than 10 at most. In those days, flight is not even up to 1000 dollars to new york

chatinent:
It's so sad what Nigeria has become. Can the poor be rich?

1986 I guess

Cantonese:


The minimum wage was 125 in 1981. Airfare to London, economy class by British Caledonian/British airways/Nigeria airways roved around 879 naira. It was much easier or affordable to travel as there were different packages for adults/students and children. So you only needed approximately 6 times your salary to purchase your air ticket.

And by the way, that minimum wage had value, unlike what you find today. You could with just one naira, get a loaf of bread/eggs/ororo/cubed sugar/canned milk/tea bag, with change for your breakfast. You could enjoy your favourite cow tail pepper soup for one naira and your Gulder/star beer for 90 kobo. Life was far better.

IBB/Buhari and their group brought this country to its knees systematically from Dec 31 1983, till May 29, 1999.

True that.

The iconic British Caledonian 747s, 707s, and DC10s flew regularly with a lot of folks from Lagos, Nigeria to Gatwick Airport, London back in the 1970s and 1980s. Pure nostalgia it was for a lot of folks like me who witnessed these events back then.

Konquest:

True that.

The iconic British Caledonian 747s, 707s, and DC10s flew regularly with a lot of folks from Lagos, Nigeria to Gatwick Airport, London back in the 1970s and 1980s. Pure nostalgia it was for a lot of folks like me who witnessed events back then.

My brother, those were the days Nigerians called themselves one. Everyone shared what everyone had irrespective of tribe and religion.

Nostalgia is the right word.

Cheers bro.

pfadom:
The flight was much more expensive then than now. It was like flying with over USD20,000 at an exchange rate of 1 Naira to USD$ 0.75.

How many Nigerians could afford it then?

Flights were very cheap. Students got rebates. Prices were great. Life was very easy. Visas too were very easy to get to different parts of the world.

Ask older people around you and you’ll get better informed.

ThierryJay:


This your analysis no too clear. Let's keep it simple. Both our minimum wage and air fares are in Naira.

In 1985 when minimum wage was 125 Naira, you needed to earn it 139 times to afford the Lagos to New York ticket then.

Now with min wage of 30k and average lag to NY ticket of 2 to 2.5 million Naira, you will need to earn 66 to 81 times the current min wage to afford the ticket.

Seems like it was way more expensive back then.

The cost was for a round trip ticket to and from New York. Round trip to New York today will cost a minimum of 4M. Please recalculate.

I'm not sure that picture was taken in 1985. That should be mid to late 90s. That ticket is too expensive for the 80s. I stand corrected though.

Cantonese:



My brother, those were the days Nigerians called themselves one. Everyone shared what everyone had irrespective of tribe and religion.

Nostalgia is the right word.

Cheers bro.

@Cantonese,

Succinctly put. I appreciate your candid feedback on this travel thread, so that the younger ones can learn about some of the deep insights from back in the day.

Cheers to you too.

How much was the average cost of Lagos-London or Lagos-New York flight?

What was the average salary of graduates fresh from NYSC?

Aside from financial support from Government scholarship and multinational companies, and middle-class family, very few Nigerians could afford what you tagged as cheap.

Cantonese:


Flights were very cheap. Students got rebates. Prices were great. Life was very easy. Visas too were very easy to get to different parts of the world.

Ask older people around you and you’ll get better informed.

pfadom:
How much was the average cost of Lagos-London or Lagos-New York flight?

What was the average salary of graduates fresh from NYSC?

Aside from financial support from Government scholarship and multinational companies, and middle-class family, very few Nigerians could afford what you tagged as cheap.

With due respect to you, I see that you are very young. You may not find information about prices then on google.

Prices of items were very cheap and quite affordable for people, irrespective of social class or status.

The average cost for tickets on either British Airways, British Caledonian, Lufthansa, etc to London, ranged between 250 and 480 naira on the economy class. Even at that tickets were easily affordable then for those who wanted to travel. Even local fares were as cheap as 50 naira.

There were restrictions on foreign exchange and so citizens were permitted only to travel with BTA of 509 naira. That encouraged smuggling of the naira because one could trade naira in the UK or other Western European countries in the BDCs on arrival there.

The same went for the Lagos-New York routes, with the marginal difference because of the distance.

Nigerians were much more comfortable and a greater percentage could afford their three square meal, unlike what obtains today.

The salary for graduates ranged from N250 depending on the organization and one could not finish that amount during the month. People easily bought brand new cars the from CFAO, SCOA, etc.

By the way, you could get a bottle of Gulder beer for 90 kobo. A bottle of coke sold for 10 kobo. A bowl of your favourite cow tail pepper soup went for one naira. You had all the money to enjoy and opportunities were everywhere for everything great to happen.

We are not talking of very few Nigerians benefitting, but a greater chunk of the population.

One man called Buhari, another one called IBB, another one called Abacha and their co travelers brought this nation to its knees on the 31st of Dec 1983. IBB brought the country into this foreign exchange mess in September 1986 and the rest is what the country suffers today.

Cheers.