As the prices of goods and services put pressure on incomes, Nigerians are cutting down their expenditure on non essential goods like alcohol, cigarettes, and general recreation activities and even on their health. The latest figures from the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics (NBS) for August 2015 show that these items experienced the lowest price increases in August 2015 even as general prices of goods and services; referred to as inflation, increased 9.3% when compared to the same period of August 2014.
Not surprisingly, prices of food items like fish, meats, cereals, eggs, milk and bread went up the highest in August with an average increase of 10.1%. The increase in food items would have been higher except that the prices of fruits, vegetables, potatoes and yam tubers did not increase as fast as other food items because it is the rainy season and these foods are available in abundance.
The NBS figures also show that the cost of education especially books, household kerosene and electricity increased at a faster pace in August 2015. This means many poor Nigerians faced increased pressure on their already small incomes during the period.
Surprisingly, the increase in prices of goods and services was higher in the rural areas than in the urban cities. The NBS figures thus paints a picture of where already poor Nigerians are getting poorer, a situation the current Buhari government will have to take into consideration as it puts together the best strategy to tackle increasing poverty in the country.
The NBS is the government office charged with measuring the changes in prices of goods and services in the country. It releases the figures, measured in percentage change, every month. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) closely watches the inflation figures to determine its interest rate policy. The CBN will be meeting next week on 22 and 23 September to take a decision on interest rates.
