By Kolawole Ojebisi
The World Bank has stated that about 75.5 per cent of Nigerians living in rural areas of the country are abjectly poor, accentuating the the chasm between the haves and have-nots in Africa’s most populous nation.
This is contained in the World Bank’s latest April 2025 Poverty and Equity Brief for Nigeria.
The report stressed that the poverty rate is a reflection of widespread economic hardship across the country with the rural population bearing the brunt of successive administration’s unviable policies.
According to the data, derived from Nigeria’s most recent nationally representative surveys, 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.
The inequality between the rich and the downtrodden is more evident in the north when compared with the south, emphasizing the country’s spatial imbalance when it comes to wealth distribution.
According to the report, 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.”
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.
According to the breakdown from the report, “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”.
The Bretton Woods institution identified education status as one of the factors responsible for people’s position on the poverty scale adding that 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 multidimensional poverty indicators paint a similarly bleak picture.
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.
The report read, “Before COVID-19, extreme poverty reduction had almost stagnated, dropping by only half a percentage point annually since 2010. Living standards of the urban poor are hardly improving, and jobs that would allow households to escape poverty are lacking.
“The limited availability of jobs is symptomatic of an economy beset by structural transformation constraints and the continued dependence on oil. In rural areas, livelihoods heavily rely on agricultural activities, often for subsistence with limited productivity gains and are ill-adapted to mitigate mounting climatic challenges.”
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.
Since 2018/19, the country has witnessed additional setbacks, with 42 million Nigerians estimated to have fallen into poverty. Inflation, exacerbated by subsidy removals and currency reforms, continues to erode purchasing power, while labour incomes have failed to keep pace with rising costs, pushing more Nigerians into economic hardship, especially in urban centres.
The report read, “Multiple shocks in a context of high economic insecurity have deepened and broadened poverty. Since 2018/19, an additional 42 million people fell into poverty, so that more than half of all Nigerians (54 per cent) are estimated to live in poverty in 2024, based on World Bank projections.
“Although recent macroeconomic reforms have begun to stabilize the economy, inflation remains high, dampening consumer demand and continuing to undermine the purchasing power of Nigerians. Labor incomes have not kept up with inflation, pushing many Nigerians, particularly in urban areas, into poverty.”
Proffering recipes for tackling poverty, the World Bank recommended urgent reforms aimed at protecting the poorest from inflationary shocks and boosting livelihoods through more productive employment.
It acknowledged recent government efforts, such as the rollout of temporary cash transfers targeting 15 million households, but warned that progress had been slow.
