Inflation worsens under Buhari, 63% Nigerians exhaust income on food –Report

No fewer than 63 per cent of Nigerians spend their income on food as inflation rises under the leadership of the President, General Muhammadu Buhari, hitting a record 12.82 per cent, according to a report by SB Morgen Intelligence.

The African-focused research firm in its August 2020 Report, noted that food inflation had been in “double digits for more than three years as the rise in the food index was caused by increases in prices of bread and cereals, potatoes, yam, and other tubers, meat, fruits, oils and fats, and fish.”

The SB Morgen report was titled, ‘Through the Roof: A legacy of high inflation and unemployment.’ The firm deals with African targeted research and strategic consulting data.

The report partly reads, “Annual inflation in Nigeria rose for the 11th straight month in July 2020 as the novel coronavirus pandemic took its toll on imports and logistics. Inflation climbed to 12.82%, its highest level in more than two years, from 12.56% in June, the National Bureau of Statistics said.

“A separate index for food, which accounts for the bulk of the inflation basket, showed a price increase of 15.48% from 15.18% in June. Food inflation has been in double digits for more than three years. In Nigeria, measuring food inflation is particularly important as a majority of people within the borders of the country spend most of their income on food.

“An SBM study from last year found that only 37% of Nigerians had any discretionary income after expenditure on food. One of the economic legacies of the Buhari administration will be high inflation. Even though he assumed office in May 2015 with inflation at 9%, poor economic decisions meant it peaked at 18.7% in January 2017, at the same time the country was in the grip of recession.

“In his five years as President, headline inflation has averaged 13.2%, while food inflation has averaged 15%. Yields on treasury bills and bonds have now fallen below inflation, a major stumbling block for the central bank’s push to attract foreign inflows to support the naira and boost the economy.”

The report added that rising insecurity in the country was also aggravating the food crisis and unless the country addressed it, there would be more disturbances