The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has reported a 0.72 percentage point increase in the inflation rate for November 2024 compared to October, according to its latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) report, which tracks changes in the prices of goods and services.
“On a year-on-year basis, the Headline inflation rate was 6.40 percentage points higher than the rate recorded in November 2023 (28.20%). This shows that the Headline inflation rate (year-on-year basis) increased in November 2024 compared to the same month in the preceding year,” the NBS stated.
Food inflation surged significantly, reaching 39.93% year-on-year in November 2024, an increase of 7.08 percentage points from November 2023’s 32.84%. On a month-on-month basis, food inflation rose by 2.98%, slightly higher than the 2.94% recorded in October 2024.
The sharp rise in food inflation is attributed to soaring prices of essential items, including mudfish, catfish, sardines, rice, yam flour, millet, corn flour, eggs, powdered milk, fresh milk, dried beef, goat meat, and frozen chicken, among others.
Nigeria is grappling with one of the most severe cost-of-living crises since independence over six decades ago, with inflationary pressures exacerbating the economic situation.
Global financial institutions such as the World Bank and International Monetary Fund have previously urged Nigeria to remove energy subsidies and adopt a floating exchange rate to address its economic challenges. Following his inauguration in May 2023, President Bola Tinubu implemented these measures, removing the petrol subsidy and floating the naira.
The consequences have been stark. Petrol prices skyrocketed from under N200 per litre to over N1,100, while the naira plunged from around N700/$ to as low as N1,600 in the parallel market. These changes have further strained household incomes, deepening the economic hardships faced by millions of Nigerians.
