The National Bureau of Statistics’ (NBS) Selected Food Price Watch for August 2024 revealed a significant increase in food prices, indicating a decline in the average Nigerian’s welfare.
The price of 1kg of locally produced brown beans increased by 5.31 percent month-on-month (MoM) from N2,444 in July 2024 to N2,574. Likewise, the price of 12-medium-sized agricultural eggs rose by 5.48 percent MoM from N2,170 in July to N2,289 in August.
A notable price increase was also recorded in 1 kg of local rice, which rose by 3.65% MoM to N1,831 in August 2024. On states basis, Akwa Ibom recorded the highest price for beans at N3,276, while Adamawa recorded the lowest price at N1,710 per kg. Jigawa State recorded the lowest price of N1,786 for agricultural eggs, while Niger State recorded the highest price at N2,996.
These price increases can be attributed to rising transportation costs, instability in the exchange rate of the Naira and insecurity on farmlands in the country.
The continued rise in food prices could have severe consequences for Nigerians’ welfare and economic growth. Rising food prices disproportionately affect low-income households, leading to reduced purchasing power, increased food insecurity and malnutrition, and widening inequality.
The government must implement policies to improve agricultural productivity in the long run. These should include subsidies for agro-allied industries, increased investment in agricultural infrastructure and reduced tariffs on essential food products.
MEANWHILE, the NBS labour force report for the first quarter (Q1) of 2024 indicates that the unemployment rate increased by 0.3 percent from 5.0 percent in Q3 2023 to 5.3 percent in Q1 2024. This increase aligns with the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) forecast of 5.7 percent, which equates to 16.1 million unemployed people in low-income countries by the end of 2024.
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Disaggregated by place of residence, unemployment rate stood at 4.3 percent in rural areas and 6.0 percent in urban areas. Similarly, youth unemployment rate dropped by 0.2 percentage points from 8.6 percent in Q3 2023 to 8.4 percent in Q1 2024, which indicates that young people are less prone to unemployment, likely due to the expansion of technology and ICT sectors (such as fintech, digital marketing and e-commerce) as well as the growth of the Nigerian creative industries (music, film and fashion).
Rising unemployment rates have several negative implications for the Nigerian economy, including an increase in crime rates, surging poverty, reduced tax revenue, social and political unrest, and a decline in the overall quality of life for citizens.
To address unemployment, the government should create a friendlier environment for private sector growth by offering tax breaks and incentives, as well as reducing bureaucratic and administrative barriers to starting and running businesses in the country. Additionally, policies that attract foreign direct investment (FDI) would bring in capital to create new industries and jobs in sectors like manufacturing and technology, ensuring long-term economic growth and job creation .
