Data from the World Bank reveals that over 129 million Nigerians are currently living in poverty.
This information is part of the newly released Nigeria Development Update report, which attributes the increase in poverty to rising headline inflation that has driven millions into hunger.
The report indicates that the official percentage of poor Nigerians has surged from 40.1% in 2018 to 56% in 2024. The World Bank stated, “With growth failing to outpace inflation, poverty has risen sharply. Since 2018, the proportion of Nigerians living below the national poverty line is estimated to have risen sharply from from 40.1% to 56.0%.”
The increase in poverty is exacerbated by Nigeria’s sluggish growth. Real GDP per capita has not rebounded to pre-recession levels following the oil price crash in 2016. The report highlights that being employed does not guarantee escape from poverty, as many jobs are insufficiently productive and poorly remunerated.
“Jobs hold the key to sharing the proceeds of growth. Since Nigeria has a young and growing population, the jobs that can harness the country’s potential ‘demographic dividend’ are needed now,” the report added.
The COVID-19 pandemic further hindered economic activity, while rising prices across nearly all goods have eroded purchasing power.
The deepening economic insecurity has also intensified broader insecurity in the country. The report notes, “Multiple shocks in a context of high economic insecurity have deepened and broadened poverty, with over 115 million Nigerians estimated to have been poor in 2023. Since 2018/19, an additional nearly 35 million people have fallen into poverty, so that more than half of Nigerians (51.1 per cent of the population in 2023) are now estimated to live in poverty.”
The World Bank reported an increase from 115 million poor Nigerians in 2023 to 129 million in 2024, indicating that 14 million individuals have fallen into poverty this year alone. Contributing factors include the COVID-19 recession, natural disasters such as flooding, escalating insecurity, the high costs associated with the demonetisation policy in early 2023, and rampant inflation.
“Previous domestic policy missteps compounded the effects of the shocks, particularly rising inflation, eroding the purchasing power, especially of urban households, pushing many into poverty. The government is ramping up the cash transfer programmes to support economically insecure households to help weather the crisis,” the report stated.
While poverty continues to be primarily a rural issue, urban poverty has risen sharply, with 31.3% of urban residents now living in poverty, up from 18% in 2018.
Many Nigerians have expressed concerns about worsening hardships under President Bola Tinubu since he took office on 29 May 2023, following the removal of fuel subsidies and the flotation of the foreign exchange.
