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Nigeria’s Rural Poverty Hits 75% – World Bank
Global apex banking institution, the World Bank, has disclosed that the poverty rate among Nigeria’s rural population has reached an alarming 75.5 per cent, highlighting deepening inequality and widespread economic hardship across the country.
According to the World Bank’s latest 2025 Poverty and Equity Brief for Nigeria, the rural dwellers are overwhelmingly bearing the brunt of economic stagnation, inflation, and structural challenges that have characterised the country’s growth trajectory in recent years.
The surveys show that while 41.3 per cent of the urban population lives below the poverty line, the figure for rural Nigeria is almost double.
The report noted that overall, 30.9 per cent of Nigerians lived below the international extreme poverty line of $2.15 per day in 2018/19, before the outbreak of COVID 19, but noted that multiple economic shocks, mounting insecurity, and inflation have worsened poverty levels since then.
The Bank
Stressing that poverty remains highly spatially unequal in Nigeria, the bank noted that in the 2018/19 period, the poverty rate in the northern geopolitical zones stood at 46.5 per cent, compared to 13.5 per cent for the southern regions.
“Based on the most recent official household survey data from Nigeria’s National Bureau of Statistics, 30.9 per cent of Nigerians lived below the international extreme poverty line of $2.15 per person per day (2017 PPP) in 2018/19 before the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Nigeria remains spatially unequal. The poverty rate in northern geopolitical zones was 46.5 per cent in 2018/19, compared with 13.5 per cent for southern ones. Inequality measured by the Gini index was estimated at 35.1 in 2018/19.
“Nigeria’s Prosperity Gap — the average factor by which individuals’ incomes must be multiplied to attain a prosperity standard of $25 per day for all — is estimated at 10.2, higher than most peers”, the report disclosed.
These figures highlight the stark economic divide across different parts of the country, which has persisted despite various interventions aimed at inclusive growth.
In addition to rural poverty, the Bank’s brief revealed troubling trends across demographic groups.
Children aged between 0 to 14 years had a poverty rate of 72.5 per cent, while 63.9 per cent of females and 63.1 per cent of males were classified as poor at the lower-middle-income poverty line of $3.65 per day.
Education status also played a significant role in poverty outcomes. Adults without any formal education recorded a poverty rate of 79.5 per cent, while those with primary education experienced a 61.9 per cent poverty rate.
Even among those with secondary education, 50.0 per cent still fell below the poverty line, whereas individuals with tertiary education fared comparatively better, with a poverty rate of 25.4 per cent.
The World Bank further noted that about 30.9 per cent of Nigerians survive on less than $2.15 a day, 32.6 per cent do not have access to limited-standard drinking water, 45.1 per cent lack limited-standard sanitation, and 39.4 per cent have no access to electricity.
Additionally, 17.6 per cent of adults have not completed primary education, and 9.0 per cent of households have at least one school-aged child who is not enrolled in school.
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the report said progress in reducing extreme poverty in Nigeria had nearly stagnated, with the poverty rate declining by only half a percentage point annually since 2010.
It also disclosed that urban living standards among the poor showed little improvement, and the availability of productive jobs remained severely limited.
The World Bank attributed this slow progress to Nigeria’s structural economic challenges, particularly its continued dependence on oil, lack of diversification, and vulnerabilities to climatic shocks impacting rural agriculture, which remains a primary source of rural livelihoods.
Corlins Walter
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Nigeria’s President, Bola Tinubu has said that country is participating in the ongoing 9th Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD9) with a mission to unlock over $1billion in trade and investment opportunities.
Tinunu, qho wrote on his X handle on Wednesday, said Nigeria’s engagement at the summit, themed “Co-create innovative solutions with Africa”, was anchored on green innovation, industrial growth, and youth empowerment.
“Our participation aims to unlock $1Billion+ in trade & investment, drive green innovation & industrial growth, expand opportunities for our youth, and position Nigeria as the heart and gateway to West Africa’s vast market”, he stated.
Describing the conference as a launchpad for lasting development and global partnership, Tinubu noted that Nigeria’s push was built on “technology, talent and trust.”
He added that Nigeria will continue to play a leadership role on the continent, declaring that: “Nigeria will lead, and Africa will rise.”
Deputy Governor of Bayelsa State, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, has said the state is committed to diversification of its economy by promoting food security, job and wealth creation through revolutionization of the agricultural sector.
Senator Ewhrudjakpo stated this during his presentation at a panel discussion in Kigali, capital of Rwanda, during a week-long agricultural tour of the State’s delegation to the East African nation, saying Government was poised to among other approaches, aggressively pursue conservation agriculture and regenerative farming to boost food production in the state.
A statement from the Senior Special Assistant to the Deputy Governor on Media, Mr. Doubara Atasi, quoted him as saying that the delegation comprised top government functionaries, including chairmen of the eight Local Government Areas of the state.
The Deputy Governor explained that the study tour was aimed at strengthening knowledge in modern agricultural practices such as mechanization and climate-smart food production technologies.
Other officials who participated in the discussions, according to the Media Aide of the Deputy Governor include, the Chief Executive of Rwanda Cooperation, Ms. Patricie Uwase, and the Vice Chancellor of the Rwandan Institute for Conservative Agriculture (RICA), Dr. Olusegun Yerokun.
Sharing his experience from the study tour, the State’s Commissioner for Agriculture and Natural Resources, Prof. Bekes Sese, described the choice of Rwanda as very appropriate and rewarding as the east African country share a lot of similarities with Nigeria in terms of climate and other environmental conditions.
Prof. Sese, who gave thumbs up to Rwanda for its clean environment and current level of agricultural production, said the same could be replicated in Nigeria, especially in Bayelsa, with proper organization and attitudinal behaviour, noting also that the tour has exposed the delegation to field observation of soil erosion control trials, technical demonstration on artificial insemination in pigs, water-use efficiency and mechanization in crop production.
While encouraging Bayelsans to embrace farming and self-reliance, the Agric commissioner informed that the Governor Douye Diri-led administration was making conscious efforts to change the state agricultural trajectory for good.
“We visited the Rwandan Institute for Conservation Agriculture, and associated facilities located at the Bugesera District, Eastern Province of Rwanda.
“We had the privilege to have field observation of erosion control trials, biosecurity on livestock production, and climate-smart irrigation technologies, with a visit to the Black Soldier Fly (BSF) facility that converts organic waste into high-protein livestock feed and fertilizer.
“I believe the beautiful things including the clean environment in Rwanda can be replicated here in Nigeria, even in Bayelsa with proper organization and the right attitude”, the Commissioner said.
Other members of the State delegation were the Deputy Chief of Staff, Deputy Governor’s Office, Comrade Gowon Toruyouyei; the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Chief Thompson Amule, his Marine and Blue Economy counterpart, Dr. Faith Izibenua Zibbs-Godwin, heads of Agriculture department in the eight Local Government Areas of the State, a Director from the State Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy and Mr. Ebiuwou Abeki.
The Tide learnt that recently the State Governor, Senator Douye Diri, had charged chairmen of the eight Local Government Areas to key into his administration’s effort to boost agriculture by investing in crops where their areas have comparative advantage to ensure food security and job creation.
The Executive Secretary/Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Shippers’ Council, Dr. Pius Akutah, has called for inter-agency and multi-sectoral collaborations to combat the rising incidents of human trafficking and stowaways in the nation’s marine and blue economy sector.
Akutah, who made the call, Tuesday, in his office in Abuja, while receiving the leadership of the National Agency for Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons and the MMS WoFHoF Initiative, who were on a courtesy visit to explore collaboration to combat human trafficking by sea, noted that stowaway is a veritable means of transporting victims of human trafficking to other countries.
He described the menace as transnational organised crime that accounts for a global loss of over $100m annually, adding that the crime started growing in Africa in the last 10 years, taking a dangerous form.
The visit, which was part of the means of rallying relevant agencies, ministries, and stakeholders in the marine and blue economy sector, was facilitated by the MMS WoFHoF Initiative to help combat the menace of human trafficking by sea and gender-based violence.
He stated that he had handled human trafficking cases as a prosecutor for the nation in the past, affirming that the NAPTIP Act of 2003 derived its source from the Transnational Organised Crime Convention 2000, to which Nigeria is a signatory.
According to him, “The menace has become something we should all join hands together to combat because it leads to many criminal activities. The maritime sector is not left out of this; stowaway is a veritable means of transporting victims to other countries.
“You know, before now, they used land transport. Now, stowaways have become a major means of transporting these people, victims, to where they are needed.”
He added that the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, had spoken eloquently and in strong terms against sexual harassment within the sector, especially onboard ships.
“This is one issue that the Minister will take very seriously. As the port economic regulatory agency in the sector, we are concerned about the port economy, and these are criminal activities that also destroy the economy of the port.
“So, it is also within our mandate to go into this partnership with NAPTIP and your partnering NGO-MMS WoFHoF, and we are committed to that partnership going forward”, Akutah stated.
He explained that within the port sector, many other agencies are very important in this struggle.
Earlier, the Director-General of NAPTIP, Hajia Binta Adamu Bello, who described the NSC as a critical partner, disclosed that due to the intense operational heat on traffickers on the land borders by operatives of NAPTIP, some of the traffickers have now resorted to using the waterways to traffic their victims.
“The shipping, ports, and logistics sectors can play a pivotal role in early detection, prevention, and reporting of trafficking activities, making collaboration between NAPTIP and NSC not only strategic but essential”, she said.
Bello added that the agency is proposing to deepen engagement with the maritime sector in the fight against human trafficking, especially in sensitisation for the identification of potential trafficking cases along the waterways and timely reporting to relevant authorities.
She said, “We propose a collaboration targeting port workers, shipping agents, freight forwarders, crew members, and other maritime stakeholders to identify and report suspected trafficking activities using NSC’s outreach structures, the Nigerian Port Process Manual platforms, and Port Standing Task Team channels to integrate anti-trafficking awareness.”
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