In yet another grim picture, 82.9 million Nigerians are currently living in poverty in the country.
The people are living on less than one United States dollar per day, statistics have shown.
The 2019 Poverty and Inequality in Nigeria report released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Monday, represents 40.09 per cent of the total population.
The bureau predicted that this rising trend was likely to continue despite the fact that Nigeria is Africa’s biggest oil producer but the sector bedeviled by accusations of corruption.
Absolute poverty, according to the report, is measured by the number of people, who can afford only the bare essentials of shelter, food and clothing.
Northern states rank poorest
Further details provided in the nation-wide survey report show that Northern states in Nigeria rank poorest.
According to the report, 9 of the top 10 poorest states in Nigeria ere from the norther region with Sokoto, Taraba and Jigawa being the poorest.
The summary report also shows that 52.1% of rural dwellers in Nigeria are poor, while only 18.04% of urban dwellers are classified as poor.
According to NBS, on average, 4 out of 10 individuals in Nigeria have real per capita expenditures below N137,430 per year, which translates to N376.5 per day.
About the Survey
The Nigerian Living Standards Survey (NLSS) is the official survey that is the basis for measuring poverty and living standards. Between September of 2018 and October of 2019, the National Bureau of Statistics conducted the latest round of the NLSS after a decade.
A total of 52.10 per cent of rural dwellers are living in poverty while the poverty rate in urban centres is 18.04 per cent, the report stated.
The NBS together with the World Bank used the Nigerian Living Standards Survey to measure poverty and living standards between September of 2018 and October of 2019.
