Inflation jumps to 22.22%, Buhari blames global downturn, not his failed policies
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Inflation rate climbed to 22.22 per cent in April, as seen in the latest figures churned out by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
All-Items Index inflation in April was 1.91 per cent or 0.05 percentage points higher than the 1.86 per cent in March. That meant the prices of goods and services were generally 0.05 per cent costlier in April versus March.
The latest inflation rate is the highest in 17 years, but President Muhammadu Buhari has denied his policies are responsible for it, according to his spokesman Garba Shehu.
Inflation rate continues its uptrend despite multiple interest rate hikes by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to tame it.
The CBN raised the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) from 11.5 per cent to 18 per cent between May 2022 and March 2023, Daily Post writes.
Food inflation
Food inflation rate hit 24.61 per cent year-on-year (YoY) in April, which was 6.24 points higher than 18.37 per cent in April 2022.
But it was 24.35 per cent in March 2023.
The NBS explained the rise in YoY food inflation was caused by increases in the prices of Oil and fat, Bread and cereals, Fish, Potatoes, Yam and other tubers, Fruits, Meat, Vegetable, and Spirits.
“All items less farm produce” or Core inflation – which excludes the prices of volatile agricultural produce – was 20.14 per cent in April 2023, up 5.96 per cent from 14.18 per cent in April 2022. It is also higher than the 19.86 per cent in March 2023, the NBS said.
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Additional inflation drivers
According to the NBS, the highest increases were recorded in the prices of gas, air transport, liquid fuel, vehicle spare parts, fuels, and lubricants for personal transport equipment, medical services, and road transport.
Contributors to the increase in the headline index are food and non-alcoholic beverages (11.51 per cent), housing water, electricity, gas and other fuel (3.72 per cent), clothing and footwear (1.7 per cent), and transport (1.45 per cent).
Inflation in states
All items YoY inflation rate was highest in Bayelsa in April at 26.14 per cent, Kogi (25.57 per cent), and Rivers (24.95 per cent).
It was lowest in Borno (19.06 per cent), Taraba (19.64 per cent), and Sokoto (19.90 per cent).
Cross River had the highest rise MoM at 3.05 per cent, followed by Bayelsa (2.92 per cent), Rivers (2.62 per cent.
The lowest rise MoM was in Katsina (0.52 per cent), next Jigawa (0.74 per cent), and Osun (0.96 per cent).
Food inflation YoY was highest in Kogi (29.50 per cent), Kwara (29.48 per cent), and Bayelsa (29.38 per cent).
It was lowest in Sokoto (19.55 per cent), trailed by Taraba (20.20 per cent), and Jigawa (20.68 per cent).
Buhari denies responsibility for skyrocketing inflation
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) quoted Shehu as arguing high inflation is a worldwide problem to which no nation is immune, following the global economic downturn and the COVID-19 pandemic.
“These days, the media house is at its best when it comes to twisting politically sensitive facts to suit its preconceived notions,” Shehu said, as published by The PUNCH.
“In one of its highest fallacies, the paper this morning is tying the rise of inflation to its 17-year high to the person of the President, Muhammadu Buhari, who leaves office in exactly two weeks from this day.
“Anybody who promotes this kind of thinking is telling the whole world that they either don’t know what is happening all over the world or they are not paying attention to the facts.
“Considering that Nigeria relies heavily on imports for essential products like petroleum, cooking oils, fertilizers, crop chemicals, and others, international price fluctuations significantly impact local prices.
“The government, unless it chooses to disregard the principles of free trade, has limited maneuverability in this regard.”