A recent World Bank Nigeria Development Update (NDP) report released in Abuja today has disclosed that more than 104 million Nigerians now live below the poverty line following the economic reforms implemented by President Bola Tinubu.
The report highlighted that the removal of petrol subsidy and the unification of foreign exchange rates had intensified the cost of living pressures, leading to an increase in the number of Nigerians living in poverty.
Despite acknowledging the Federal Government’s “bold reforms” as necessary to rescue Nigeria from a fiscal cliff, the World Bank noted that the current hardships were temporary.
The report emphasized that Nigeria is on the path to recovery but not yet out of the woods due to ongoing policies implemented by both fiscal and monetary authorities.
The World Bank urged the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) to publicly disclose its statement of accounts and transparently reveal its revenue inflows.
The report specifically called for detailed financial statements and revenue flows from NPPC to safeguard fiscal savings from subsidy reform and ensure that oil revenues contribute to the Federation Account.
Shubham Chaudhuri, World Bank Country Director for Nigeria, highlighted that between N300 billion and N400 billion were spent monthly on fuel subsidy.
He expressed the expectation that NNPCL should have been contributing such amounts to the Federation Account, which has not been the case.
Chaudhuri emphasized that the petrol subsidy and forex management reforms are crucial steps in improving Nigeria’s economic outlook, calling for coordinated fiscal and monetary policy actions in the short to medium term.