By: Manoah Kikekon
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| Nigeria President Bola Tinubu |
Amid a severe cost-of-living crisis, President Bola Tinubu's administration has branded claims of widespread hunger in Nigeria as "misleading."
The statement, issued from France by spokesman Bayo Onanuga, directly counters criticism from former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and pins the country's current economic problems on the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Onanuga fiercely rejected comparisons made by Atiku between Nigeria's current state and the historical unrest that sparked the French and Russian revolutions. The presidential aide stated, “Nigeria is moving in the right direction,” arguing that the Tinubu administration is working to correct years of "economic mismanagement" from the PDP era when Atiku was vice president. He highlighted "bold reforms" as the key to fixing these inherited issues.
To support its position, the presidency pointed to several positive economic indicators. Key among them is Nigeria's foreign exchange reserves, which are reported to have grown from $32 billion to nearly $42 billion. The administration also claims to have cleared over $7 billion in arrears, including significant debts to airlines. Furthermore, Onanuga cited unprecedented government revenues, allowing states to pay salaries on time and have surplus funds for projects.
Citing a recent report from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the spokesman noted a decline in inflation to 20%. He touted this as evidence of the "positive changes taking place across the nation" under President Tinubu's leadership, progress he claims opposition figures are choosing to ignore.
However, these claims contrast sharply with the daily experience of millions of Nigerians. The country is grappling with a historic cost-of-living crisis. Despite the cited decline, inflation remains cripplingly high at 20%, and petrol prices have skyrocketed to between N890 and N900 per litre. This has drastically reduced purchasing power and intensified hardship for ordinary citizens.
The Tinubu administration's optimism is also tempered by assessments from major international financial institutions. While the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has praised Tinubu's policies, it simultaneously insists that "poverty and food insecurity remain high." More starkly, an April 2025 World Bank report stated that Nigeria now has the highest number of extremely poor people globally and warned that millions more could fall into poverty by 2027.