The Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE) has warned that many Nigerian households are still not experiencing tangible relief despite the recent sharp drop in the country’s inflation rate, citing persistent structural challenges that continue to weaken the impact on daily living.
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) reported that headline inflation fell to 16.05 percent in October, marking one of the steepest declines in recent months. Reacting to the data, Muda Yusuf, CEO of CPPE, described the decline as a positive step for economic stability but stressed that its benefits remain limited for ordinary citizens.
“Households have yet to feel the full welfare impact due to ongoing structural constraints in food supply, transportation, energy, housing, and essential services,” Yusuf said. He urged the government to intensify reforms in food production, logistics, energy, and other critical sectors, noting that better coordination of monetary, fiscal, and structural policies is needed to sustain the disinflation trend.
Yusuf explained that while the moderation in inflation was supported by base effects, exchange rate stability, and improving macroeconomic indicators, pressures remain high in key areas including food, transportation, housing, utilities, education, and health — sectors that account for 84 percent of inflation.
He further highlighted that supply-side challenges such as rising logistics costs, energy shortages, insecurity in agricultural zones, and climate-related setbacks continue to blunt the expected gains for households.
According to Yusuf, coordinated policy measures, including tighter monetary conditions, improved foreign exchange liquidity, and reduced speculative dollar demand, have contributed to the easing of inflation. However, longstanding barriers like high logistics and energy costs, expensive credit, and climate shocks still prevent ordinary Nigerians from fully benefiting from the decline.
“Addressing these structural challenges in critical sectors is essential if households are to feel the relief from lower inflation,” he concluded.
