HomeNewsWorld Bank says '87% of Nigeria's poor people are in the north'

World Bank says ‘87% of Nigeria’s poor people are in the north’

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World Bank has recently released a document in which it estimates that the vast majority of poor people living in Nigeria are in the north.

In the report titled Advancing social protection in a dynamic Nigeria, the international financial institution stated that Nigeria’s multidimensionally poor are disproportionately concentrated in the northern regions of the country.

According to the report, 87% of poor Nigerians are northerners. That is more than 4 out of 5 poor Nigerians.

“Poverty in the northern regions of the country has been increasing especially in the north-west zone. Almost half of all poor lived in the north-west and the north accounts for 87 percent of all poor in the country in 2016,” the report stated.

The report, furthermore, stated that the southern parts of Nigeria, on the other hand, suffered just 12 percent poverty, which varies from zone to zone.

“Poverty rates in the southern zones were around 12 percent with little variation across zones. The south-south zone saw the most significant drop in poverty from 2011-2016. Poverty was significantly higher in rural areas of the country in 2016.

“An estimated 64 percent of all poor lived in rural areas and 52 percent of the rural population lived below the poverty line in 2016. In contrast, the poverty rate in urban areas remained stable at 16 percent between 2011 and 2016.”

The report covers from 2011 to 2016 and estimates that the people living in extreme poverty has gone up. Also, many more are susceptible to falling into poverty, particularly in the north.

Nigeria is a middle-income economy and as such, the dreadful performance is unprecedented.

“Despite being a middle-income economy, Nigeria fares astonishingly poorly in poverty and human capital-related outcomes,” the report continued.

“The number of people living in extreme poverty has gone up from 2011 to 2016, and many more are vulnerable to falling into poverty, especially in the northern regions of the country.

“Instead, successive governments have aimed to provide benefits to the population in the form of lower fuel prices, which can directly affect welfare through savings in the purchase of fuel, as well as bring indirect benefits through lower costs of transportation,” it added.

The 49 pages report was released on the 26th of January and is available for download on the official website of the World Bank.

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