Nigeria’s Easing Inflation – Progress on Paper, Pain in Reality

Nigeria’s Easing Inflation – Progress on Paper, Pain in Reality

Nigeria’s inflation rate easing to 16.05%, the lowest in months, should ordinarily be good news. On the surface, it signals that the economic storm may finally be calming. But beyond the statistics and government celebrations, one truth remains stubbornly clear, life is still brutally expensive for the average Nigerian to live.

Yes, inflation is easing, but prices have not fallen. They are simply rising slower. A bag of rice is still high, transport is still biting, cooking gas still feels like a luxury, and feeding a family requires calculations that would make a mathematician sweat. The relief people expected from lower inflation has not reached the markets where it matters most.

For the Nigerian household, the economic reality is measured not by percentages or charts but by the daily struggle of stretching income that no longer stretches. It is measured by the parent who now buys food in cups instead of bags, the young worker who walks long distances to save transport fare, and the small business owner who cuts down production because customers simply cannot pay more.

Easing inflation should mean hope. But hope only grows when the prices on the street reflect the numbers from Abuja. For now, the gap between economic reports and lived experience remains wide.

If Nigeria must truly recover, policies must shift from mere macro-economic stabilization to direct, tangible impact on households:

• Affordable food
• Cheaper transportation
• Stable power supply
• Support for small businesses
• A currency that allows people to plan their future

These are the real indicators Nigerians are watching not just inflation percentages.

Until then, the easing inflation rate is progress on paper, but pain in reality. The statistics may be cooling, but the struggle in Nigerian kitchens and markets tells a different story, one the government must urgently listen to.