Presidency Rejects World Bank Claim That 139 Million Nigerians Are Poor

The Presidency has refuted the World Bank’s latest report claiming that 139 million Nigerians are currently living in poverty.

Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, described the report as misleading and inconsistent with Nigeria’s official data.

Onanuga explained that the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) remains the only credible source for poverty figures in the country, emphasizing that the World Bank’s estimate does not reflect Nigeria’s current economic realities.

He said the NBS last conducted a verified national survey in 2018–2019, which put the poverty figure at about 82.9 million Nigerians — far lower than the number cited by the World Bank.

Onanuga added that the government is implementing several social intervention and economic reform programs aimed at reducing poverty and improving citizens’ welfare, insisting that progress is being made despite the challenges.