The Presidency has rejected the World Bank’s latest report estimating that 139 million Nigerians are living in poverty, describing the figure as “unrealistic” and detached from the country’s current economic realities.
President Bola Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Media and Public Communication, Sunday Dare, said on Wednesday that while Nigeria values its partnership with the World Bank, the poverty figures must be “properly contextualised” within the limits of global poverty measurement models.
According to him, the World Bank’s estimate was based on the global poverty line of $2.15 per person per day, set in 2017 using Purchasing Power Parity (PPP), and should not be interpreted as a literal headcount of poor Nigerians. He explained that when converted to nominal terms, the $2.15 benchmark equals about ₦100,000 per month at current exchange rates—well above Nigeria’s new minimum wage of ₦70,000.
“The measure is an analytical construct, not a direct reflection of local income realities,” Dare said, noting that PPP-based poverty assessments rely on historical consumption data and often overlook Nigeria’s large informal and subsistence economies.
The Presidency argued that the World Bank’s methodology does not capture the full picture of Nigeria’s socio-economic realities and that what matters more is the direction of change. It said the country’s economy is on a recovery and reform trajectory, driven by policies aimed at inclusive growth and social protection.
Dare highlighted several welfare and intervention programmes under the Tinubu administration, including the Conditional Cash Transfer Scheme, which has reached up to 15 million households with verified digital enrolment through the National Social Register. He said over ₦297 billion has been disbursed since 2023 to poor and vulnerable families.
He also mentioned the Renewed Hope Ward Development Programme, targeting all 8,809 electoral wards with micro-infrastructure and livelihood projects, and the strengthening of National Social Investment Programmes such as N-Power and the GEEP micro-loan initiatives (TraderMoni, MarketMoni, and FarmerMoni).
The Presidency listed additional initiatives to address rising costs and stimulate job creation, including food security programmes, subsidised grain and fertiliser distribution, and the Renewed Hope Infrastructure Fund for energy, roads, and housing. It also cited the National Credit Guarantee Company, designed to expand affordable credit for small businesses, women, and youth entrepreneurs.
According to Dare, the Tinubu administration is tackling the structural distortions that have long constrained productivity and inclusive growth. He described reforms such as fuel subsidy removal, exchange rate unification, and fiscal reallocation toward productive sectors as “painful but necessary choices” to fix the root causes of poverty.
He added that even the World Bank had acknowledged that these reforms are helping to restore macroeconomic stability and growth momentum. However, he stressed that the ultimate goal is to ensure that economic recovery translates into real welfare improvements for ordinary Nigerians.
“Nigeria rejects exaggerated statistical interpretations detached from local realities,” the statement said. “The government remains focused on empowering households, expanding opportunity, and building a fairer, more prosperous nation.”
Earlier, the World Bank, in its October 2025 Nigeria Development Update titled “From Policy to People: Bringing the Reform Gains Home,” had reported that 139 million Nigerians are now living in poverty—up from 129 million in April 2025 and 87 million in 2023.
The Bank’s Country Director for Nigeria, Mathew Verghis, praised the Tinubu government’s reforms in the exchange rate and petrol subsidy regimes but warned that the benefits have not yet reached ordinary citizens.
“Despite these stabilisation gains, many households are still struggling with eroded purchasing power,” Verghis said.
Opposition parties and labour leaders responded to the Presidency’s statement, saying the hardship Nigerians face is undeniable. The Labour Party, New Nigeria People’s Party, and Peoples Democratic Party all argued that the government’s reforms have yet to translate into tangible relief.
The Nigeria Labour Congress said many workers struggle to survive on the ₦70,000 minimum wage, which is now worth about $46 per month, noting that “poverty is not an abstract statistic; it is lived reality.”
