Nigeria’s inflation rate has dropped to 17.93 percent in May from 18.12% in April 2021. 

This is according to the ‘Consumer Price Index Report’, released by the National Bureau of Statistics.

On a month-on-month basis, the headline index increased by 1.01 percent in May 2021. This is 0.04 percentage points higher than the rate recorded in April 2021 (0.97 percent). 

Also, the urban inflation rate increased by 18.51 percent (year-on-year) in May 2021 from 18.68 percent recorded in April 2021, while the rural inflation rate increased by 17.36 percent in May 2021 from 17.57 percent in April 2021. 

According to the report, “all items inflation on year on year basis was highest in Kogi (25.13%), Bauchi (23.02%) and Sokoto (20.11%), while Katsina (15.69%), Imo (15.52%) and Delta (14.85%) recorded the slowest rise in headline Year on Year inflation.”

In another development, the food inflation also reduced to 22.28% in May from 22.72 in April. This was driven by increases in prices of bread, cereals, milk, cheese, eggs, fish, soft drinks, coffee, tea and cocoa, fruits, meat, oils and fats and vegetables. 

However, a new World Bank report says that rising prices pushed about seven million Nigerians below the poverty line in 2020 adding that the federal government “took measures to protect the economy against a much deeper recession” but it was recommended that certain policies should be set for a strong recovery.” 

The statement notes that although the economy started to grow again, prices are increasing rapidly, severely impacting Nigerian households.