Nigeria’s food inflation rate experienced a slight decline in August 2024, dropping to 37.52% from 39.53% recorded in July 2024.
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) disclosed this in its inflation report released on Friday, indicating a month-on-month decrease of 0.10%, as the inflation rate for August stood at 2.37%, compared to 2.47% in July.
This reduction is attributed to falling prices in key food commodities such as yam, Irish potatoes, vegetable oil, and others.
The NBS highlighted that the average prices of essential items like tobacco, tea, cocoa, coffee, groundnut oil, milk, water yam, cassava tuber, palm oil, and vegetables also contributed to the overall easing of inflationary pressures in the food sector.
According to the report, “The average annual rate of food inflation for the twelve months ending August 2024 over the previous twelve-month average was 36.99%, representing an 11.98% increase from the 25.01% recorded in August 2023.”
This marks the second consecutive month that Nigeria has recorded a decline in food inflation, offering a glimmer of hope amid the country’s broader economic challenges. In addition to the drop in food inflation, Nigeria’s headline inflation rate also decreased, falling to 32.15% in August 2024.
However, despite these encouraging statistics, many Nigerians have expressed concerns that the figures do not reflect the realities in local markets, where prices of essential goods remain high.
As the nation grapples with inflationary pressures, consumers are urging for more impactful measures that would translate to tangible relief in everyday living costs.