Nigeria Inflation Climbs Food Prices Surge Amid Rising Cost Of Living

Nigeria’s Inflation Climbs, Food Prices Surge Amid Rising Cost Of Living

Nigeria’s cost of living crisis deepened in March 2025 as food inflation spiked to 21.79% year-on-year, according to the latest report from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

The NBS attributed the surge to significant price increases in staple foods such as garri, rice, and fresh produce. On a month-on-month basis, food inflation rose to 2.18% in March, up from 1.67% recorded in Februar….READ MORE….

Consequently, headline inflation also rose to 24.23% in March 2025, reflecting a 1.05% increase from the 23.18% recorded in February. This upward trend underscores the persistent economic pressures facing consumers nationwide.

The report highlighted that items such as fresh ginger, yellow garri, Ofada rice, natural honey, crabs, potatoes, plantain flour, and fresh pepper were major contributors to the inflationary surge. These items experienced significant price hikes due to supply chain disruptions, seasonal scarcities, and escalating transportation costs.

Food inflation varied significantly across states. On a year-on-year basis, Oyo (34.41%), Kaduna (31.14%), and Kebbi (30.85%) reported the steepest increases. In contrast, Bayelsa (9.61%), Adamawa (12.41%), and Akwa Ibom (12.60%) experienced more modest inflation rates.

The month-on-month data also showed disparities. Kaduna (18.85%), Osun (16.49%), and Oyo (14.44%) recorded the highest price surges, whereas Sokoto (-14.10%), Nasarawa (-9.91%), and Edo (-5.78%) saw reductions in food inflation. These declines were attributed to localized harvests and targeted government subsidy programs.

The NBS further explained that its analysis is based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI), which weights items according to household consumption patterns across different regions. This variance in consumption behavior makes direct state-to-state comparisons unreliable and potentially misleading.