This #NairaLife is the story of a medical student stuck in a loop that is the Nigerian education system. One day, he got some information that changed his life forever, and he went from being a dependent to a provider. This is how it all happened. Let’s start with the first time you worked for […]

The subject of this NairaLife is a medical sales rep who works at a job where everything can go wrong and derail the trajectory of her life. But you see how to make money and build wealth? She kinda has it on lock. What was your first memory of money? When I was eight years […]

First, an important announcement: In case you missed it: Fu’ad wrote and published his last Naira Life story last week. My name is Toheeb, and I’ll be taking over from him. Also, I had an interesting conversation with him where he talked about the origin of Naira Life and his experiences writing the first 100 […]

What’s your oldest memory of money?  I was 5, and my mum gave me money to buy a crate of eggs – ₦1 coin. My own introduction to money was with coins, and this was in 1990. There was the 50 kobo coin. My boxed-up uncle used to give me whenever he visited.  What could […]

On February 4, 2019, the first Naira Life went up. What had driven the creation of the series was simple — get Nigerians to open up about how they move the naira in and out of their lives, and the complexities that come with money or the lack of it.  Since the first story went […]

Every week, Zikoko seeks to understand how people move the Naira in and out of their lives. Some stories will be struggle-ish, others will be bougie. All the time, it’ll be revealing. As we anticipate the 100th episode of the Nairalife series, here are 10 must-read episodes from the series: 1) The Firstborn Who’s Playing Breadwinner […]

When you rewind to the very very beginning, what’s your oldest memory of money? It’s definitely collecting Salah money at my grandparents’ house. Some people would willingly give me, and I’d tax some others.  Do you remember the first thing you ever did for money? Does washing snails for my aunty count? Anyway, I started […]

What’s your oldest memory of money? I was seven, and there was a housewarming party at my father’s new house. An uncle gave me ₦50 as per for being a good boy. Later that evening, an aunt asked me to lend her the money for her transport home. She’s never returned my money since then, […]

My favourite first question is – Hmmm..First memory of money? Haha. Exactly.  It was in secondary school. My allowance for the week was ₦250 per day or something. So I got maybe ₦1k a week. I spent it on meat pie. I was not one of those “I am saving my money.” Tuck shop! Haha! […]

This is #NairaLife, episode 96. What’s your oldest memory of money? I’d say not having a lot of it. My dad had money, but it did not seem that way. I felt we were poor. I remember back in secondary school, I had to wear worn-out shoes and bags, my uniforms were not anything to […]

What’s the first thing you ever did for money? I was writing my guy’s notes in secondary school. I didn’t even have complete notes for myself.  Haha. What were your going rates?  About ₦250 for the day’s notes, which was about six or so hours of classes.  Why did you do it?  I wanted more […]

Do you remember how much your first job paid you? Ah yes. My first job was at the Federal Palace Hotel in 1988. This job came after I finished catering school. My salary was ₦125; I also got an allowance that took my money up to ₦165. Back then, taking a taxi to work cost […]

What is the first thing you ever did for money?  Haha. Farming. The first thing I did was farming.  Do you remember the first money you made from farming? I farmed about three plots of land and harvested two bags of rice and sold it for no more than ₦4,000. This was around 2008, and […]

What’s your oldest memory of money? Haha, I know this question from Naira Life.  Hahaha, an OG.  I remember finding some money in my aunt’s purse. She had just relocated to London, and she left some naira in her bag. I think she forgot it. Anyway, my siblings and I took it and didn’t tell […]

Let’s start with the old memory of you that has money in it.  That will be my pocket money. I’m sure I was in JSS 1. My mum would give me ₦50 to school and tell me to bring back ₦30 change. Then whenever my dad was around, my dad would give me ₦100 and […]

Tell me about your oldest memory of money. Hmm, I didn’t acknowledge the existence of money till I was in secondary school. Prior to that, whatever I needed was always provided. I’m not saying that this changed in secondary school, but there was a stark difference between what my mates had and what I had. […]

This week’s #NairaLife is an attempt to explore some of the costs that exist and prices people have to pay because SARS just won’t leave them alone. Tell me about the first time it happened.  To avoid traffic, I used to leave the house very early – as early as 4 am – and leave […]

When you think about money, what is the oldest memory that comes to your mind? Growing up with a struggling single mother. She couldn’t finish school when she got pregnant and had to drop out. What was she studying? Accounting. She was also working part-time at a cosmetics store, where she met my dad. They […]

Tell me about the day you knew something wasn’t right.  I woke up in the middle of the night feeling funny. I’d slept like two hours earlier, but something woke me up. I decided to check my blood pressure  – I’m hypertensive.  Wait, how old are you?  27 soon. Anyway, I checked my BP, and […]

When would you say you first “knew money”? I have always wanted to be rich since I was 10. I started reading newspapers at an early age, and I learnt about MKO Abiola’s money and generosity. I would write on my school notes the number of houses I wanted to build, the number and names […]

What’s your oldest memory of money? It’s stealing a ₦5 note from my mum and after she beat me, she asked my cousin to bring a knife. My cousin and I were a bit in love with each other, so he brought a blunt knife, and she cut me with it.  Uhm, what?! “You’ll show […]

Let’s start with when you joined the military.  The middle of 1977. That’s when I stepped into the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA).  That was your first job?  No. After my school cert, I worked for an insurance company. My salary was ₦91, and after working there for one year, I moved to a bank on […]

This weeks’ #Nairalife was made possible by FCMB’s promise of quality medical care from the comfort of your home. Do you remember the first time someone called you rich and you were extremely triggered? My cousins in London. For some reason, their step mum painted an exaggerated version of our family to them. They genuinely thought […]

This weeks’ #Nairalife was made possible by FCMB’s promise of quality medical care from the comfort of your home. Let’s start from when you were tiny.  I used to help my mum at her store where she sold perfumes. Then she opened another store for kid’s clothing in the city we lived in.  What city?  Delta. […]