Prices of facemasks, sanitisers, gloves, and thermometers have dropped as Nigeria sees a gradual but significant drop in the number of COVID-19 cases in the last two months.
COVID-19 cases in Nigeria were reported at 624 on July 28, but this fell to 136 on September 28, representing 78.2 percent crash, BusinessDay analysis of data from the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) shows.
BusinessDay market survey in Lagos and Abuja shows that the prices of some of the items have fallen by over 50 percent due to slowing demand caused by low Covid-19 numbers and low compliance levels.
At HealthPlus Pharmaceutics Limited in Lagos, a pack of disposable facemasks containing 50 pieces now sells for N8,000 from N18,000 between February and March 2020, representing a 56 percent decrease in price. 250ml of sanitizer now costs N2,000, as against N2,800 in the early days of Covid-19, showing a 29 percent decrease.
At Careforte Pharmacy in Lagos, a pack of facemasks now goes for N3,700 as against N6,450 in the first quarter (Q1) of 2020, representing a 43 percent decrease in price. Similarly, a pack of gloves sells for N3,650 from N6,500, while a 500ml of sanitizer costs N3,500 today as against N4,000 in Q1 2020.
At most pharmacies, a non-contact infrared thermometer costs between N28,000 and N29,000 from as high as N52,000-N85,000 in Q1 2020.
“The rush for these products is not much today, unlike during the outbreak of the pandemic,” Tomisi Akinyemi, a pharmacist at HealthPlus Limited, said.
For the facemask, which is mandatory, Tolu Esan, a pharmacist at Teen Pharmacy & Stores, noted that competition from the local fashion designers, who sell at N100 per piece, reduced the price for the disposable facemasks.
Jide Atolagbe, a consumer analyst at Lagos-based Afrinvest Limited, noted that prices of these products had dropped because demand had slowed over the last few months.
“This can be attributed to a number of reasons, particularly low compliance level with Covid-19 protocols, and also prices are responding to excess supplies,” he said.
Going forward, Atolagbe expects prices to trend lower given the continued weak demand.
As of September 30, Nigeria had reported 58,848 cases and 1,112 deaths, with a discharge rate of 86 percent. Nigeria has tested only 519,140 as of September 30, according to the NCDC. South Africa with less than one-third of Nigeria’s population has tested over 2 million. Experts say lack of testing hides the spread of Covid-19 in Africa’s most populous nation.
In Abuja, before the gradual ease of the lockdown in July, virtually all stores and pharmaceuticals ventured into the sales of facemasks, Infrared thermometer, hand sanitizers, face shields, Vitamin C, Chloroquine, among others. The prices of these products were described as outrageous.
A leading pharmacy at Bwari, Abuja, sold a pack of facemasks for N20,000 in April-July, but now sells it for N6,000. The same product was sold for N30,000 at another big pharmacy in the Central Business District but now goes for N6,500 at the same store.
A sales manager in one of the Bwari pharmacy stores, Wisdom Onuoha, described the business of facemasks as the business of billionaires but said it had now declined significantly because the supply was far higher than the demand today.
“Surgical facemasks were something else then. A single mask was sold for N500 to N1000, depending on the purchasing power of the buyer, but it has crashed to N100,” he said.
The prices of the face shield have also crashed. A petty trader at Wuse area of Abuja, Praise Abiodun, said she sold her face shield for between N4,000 and N5,000 because of the high demand for it in April to July, but now sells it for less than N500 because consumers are not willing to buy face shields any more at that previous price.
“During the pandemic, I usually bought these face shields for 1,200 or N1,500 and would sell for N4,000 or N5,000. But now, I sell for as low as N300. The cost price has also dropped; you can get these shields for N200,” according to Abiodun.
Another essential commodity was hand sanitizer. A pharmacy store at Gwarimpa, Abuja, said it sold hand sanitizers for N10,000 during the peak of the Covid-19, but the price has now dropped to N2,000.
“We don’t even have and we don’t even care about getting it again, because it will tie down your money,” Jacob Yakubu, a sales attendant at another pharmacy at Bwari, Abuja, said.
The prices of Infrared thermometers in Abuja has also dropped from N100,000 at the peak period to N10,000.
The prices of Vitamin C and Zinc, and even fruits such as lime, oranges, and peer and other foods that boost the immune system are not left out.
A pharmacist in an Abuja store, Ifeanyi Onyekwere, said his store started witnessing a drastic decline in early August when lockdown restrictions were eased further.
He also said the price hikes were mainly due to exploitation by some pharmacists and traders but added that the lockdown imposed by the government made it difficult to move goods and services and consequently caused the increase in prices.
