Nigerian Tribune
THE World Bank has said that the rising prices of food items in the country could push additional six million Nigerians into poverty. The World Bank in a publication with the title, COVID-19 in Nigeria: Frontline Data and Pathways for Policy, said, “The rise in prices witnessed between June 2020 and June 2021 alone could push another 6 million Nigerians into poverty, with urban areas being disproportionately affected.”
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) had, on Monday, said that the annual food inflation rate rose for the 24th consecutive month to 20.75 per cent in October from 20.71 per cent in September as a result of further increases in the prices of basic food items.
In its Consumer Price Index, CPI and Inflation Report for October 2021, NBS noted that “This rise in the food index was caused by increases in prices of food products, coffee, tea and cocoa, milk, cheese and eggs, bread and cereals, vegetables and potatoes, yam and other tubers.” Consequently, food inflation rate had risen by 7.38 percentage points since May 2019 when it dropped to 13.37 per cent.
The World Bank added in the report, “The share of Nigerians living below the national poverty line could have increased from 40.1 percent to 42.8 per cent, due to the food price inflation witnessed between June 2020 and June 2021. This means about 5.6 million additional Nigerians would be living in poverty.
While food price inflation would decrease purchasing power and raise poverty across Nigeria, it appears that urban areas could be disproportionately affected.
In 2018/19, about 16 percent of poor Nigerians were urban dwellers.
Yet among those who would be newly impoverished by the increase in food prices between June 2020 and June 2021, around 27 per cent would be from urban areas.
The World Bank traced the rising food prices to the effect of COVID-19.
According to the global…
