Is FG Poverty Reduction Achievable in the Midst of Skyrocketing Price? -By Abba Dukawa

President Muhammadu Buhari claimed that his administration lifted 10.5m Nigerians out of poverty in the last two years, he made this known in the last Democracy Day National Address to the Nation. Barely days after president’s claim, World Bank reports stated rising prices in the country have pushed an estimated 7 million Nigerians below the poverty line in 2020 alone.

It will be highest injustice for anybody not to acknowledge many PMB’s programs to alleviate economic hardship to Nigerians but targets citizens are not much benefited from the programs. Reviving Nation’s Economy which is the one of the three cardinal promises PMB made before the electorates remain Herculean tasks as about half of the population live on less than $1(N500) per day, unemployment rate has rising to 32.5 and also Nigeria had overtaken India as the country with the largest number of people living in extreme poverty.

Everyday Nigerians lamented rising cost of living as food prices soar at 12.56%. With all sense of highest esteem to Mr President, the level of poverty in the country is unspeakable talkless of lifted – farmers, small-scale traders, artisans, market women and other people out of poverty.

According to the reports released by National Statistic Bureau; the rise in the food index was broad based, caused by increases in prices of bread, egg, beans, rice, yam, fish, meat, fruits, and vegetables. Nigerians never expects such kind hardship as country’s inflation rate rose further in June 2020 to 12.56% (Year-on-Year), 0.16% points higher than the rate recorded in May 2020 (12.4%) as country’s inflation rate rose further each passing day. In reality Food inflation across the federation is worst than official Bureau figures show. Reduction of poverty efforts will only remain inclusive due to inconsistency in monetary policy, unemployment rate, high rate of money lendering and other factors.

On inconsistency in monetary policy had contributes highest inflations, according to the new World Bank Report: Nigeria’s Exchange Rate Policies Fueling Inflation, Affecting Food Prices. Nigeria recently devalued the naira’s exchange rate to the current N411 for every US dollar. However, this new rate still falls short of the parallel market rate of over N500 for every dollar. It is this disequilibrium between the official and the parallel market rates which the World Bank blames for helping cause an upswing in inflationary pressures.

Nigerians are worrying each passing day over the increasing debt burden reached unprecedented level as it increased by N191 billion in the first quarter of this year, representing a 0.58 percent increase from N32.916 trillion as of December 31, 2020. Lack of clear economic policies scares Foreign Investment coupling with weak Naira while the country slum into recession twice, financial and economic policies of the administration do not favor the masses that spent hours under the sun to cast their votes for the administration to emerge.

For the administration to reduce the level of poverty in the country; Federal Government should focus on three Policy Priorities which include: “Reducing Inflation by Implementing Policies that Support Macroeconomic Stability, Inclusive Growth, And Job Creation; Protect poor households from the impacts of inflation; Facilitate access to financing for small and medium enterprises in key sectors to mitigate the effects of inflation and accelerate the recovery. World Bank advice.

To be honest adminstration, Poverty
Those entrusts with public offices may not necessarily remain honest to express truth to the leaders on the true situation on the ground. One may go to market stalls to listen peoples conversation even without listening them one may see the anger in their faces. For sake of history and the country to judge the administration fairly, let captain of the ship regain his past hard earning status of being a strong and No-Non Sense General understand Nigerians are languishing in extreme poverty battling with daily survival became uphill challenge due to unprecedented hardships peoples going through in the country, reaching highest since late 80s. Let the administration do any things to prevent the worst happening in remaining two years of the administration.

There has been no government in Nigeria history that has enjoyed the citizens’ goodwill like the present administration. There was a time when it would have been a crime before to criticise Baba Buhari’s administration. Anybody that criticised the administration openly would surely end up with nose bleeding especially from enthusiastic supporters of the regime that think the administration would turn poor peoples rich overnight and turns rich ones in the society to poor overnight. The case remains the other way around, the poor remain poorer, while the rich become richer.

Dukawa Write In From Kano And Can Be Reached At abbahydukawa@gmail com