
When Tweets Meet Policy: How Social Media Shapes Economic Expectations In Africa – By Prof Chukwuemeka Ifegwu Eke, University of Abuja
When Tweets Meet Policy: How Social Media Shapes Economic Expectations in Africa By Professor Chukwuemeka Ifegwu Eke, University of Abuja The Big Question Can WhatsApp, X (Twitter), and TikTok really influence how citizens respond to government policies?My latest research—“Rational Expectations, Social Media and Policy Ineffectiveness in Sub-Saharan Africa (2000–2024)”—set out to answer this. The Research Journey We examined how fast-spreading digital information affects the traditional link between macroeconomic policy and economic growth.The guiding idea was simple: when everyone receives policy news instantly, they adjust their expectations sooner—possibly neutralizing policy impact. Data and Methods To capture twenty-five years of evidence (2000–2024),…