Despite the rising cost of living spreading like wildfire across the country, Nigerians paid 24 per cent more to purchase one litre of the Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) or petrol in September.
This is as the World Bank in its latest report on Nigeria, said 129 million Nigerians currently live below poverty.
In its Nigeria Development Update report released on Thursday in Abuja, the world’s financial institution said that over 129 million Nigerians represented a sharp rise from 40.1 per cent in 2018 to 56 per cent in 2024.
The World Bank report read in part, “With growth proving too slow to outpace inflation, poverty has risen sharply. Since 2018, the share of Nigerians living below the national poverty line16 is estimated to have risen sharply from 40.1 per cent to 56.0 per cent.
“Combined with population growth, this means that some 129 million Nigerians are living in poverty. This stark increase partly reflects Nigeria’s beleaguered growth record. Real GDP per capita has not recovered to the level it was at prior to the oil price-induced recession in 2016.”
Riding on the back of the WB report, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in its newly released Premium Motor Spirit (Petrol) Price Watch for September 2024, noted that the average retail price paid by consumers for PMS for September 2024 was N1030.46, indicating a 64.55% increase compared to the value recorded in September 2023 (N626.21).
Likewise, comparing the average price value with the previous month (.i.e. August 2024), the average retail price increased by 24.08% from N830.46.
On state profile analysis, Katsina State had the highest average retail price at N1096.15.
Ebonyi and Akwa Ibom States were next, with N1090.94 and N1085.71, respectively. Conversely, Yobe, Sokoto, and Kebbi States had the lowest average retail prices at N939.38, N961.67, and N986.67 respectively.
Lastly, on the Zonal profile, the North-West Zone had the highest average retail price of N1036.52, while the North-East Zone had the lowest price of N1014.55.
The data collection for the report was conducted in sample outlets spread across 774 local government areas in all 36 states, and the FCT, Abuja.
