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From Isaac Anumihe, and Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
Over 63 percent or 133 million of Nigeria’s, estimated 200 million citizens 133 million have been categorised as multidimensionally or extremely poor according to the National Bureau of Statistics
This categorisation the NBS said means that these experience deprivations in more than one dimension or in at least 26 per cent of weighted indicators.
In a National Multidimensional Poverty Index (NMPI) launched by President Muhammadu Buhari in Abuja, yesterday, more than half of the nation’s population is deprived in cooking fuel and high deprivations are also apparent in sanitation, time to healthcare, food insecurity and housing.
The report also explained that multidimensional poverty is higher in rural areas with 72 per cent of people poor compared to 42 per cent of people in urban areas.
This was even as President Muhammadu Buhari, yesterday, said that, henceforth, the report of the National Multidimensional Poverty Index (NMPI) would be used to allocate resources for national development.
Speaking at the launch of the NMPI in Abuja, the president who was represented by his Chief of Staff, Professor Ibrahim Gambari, noted that the NMPI would be integrated into the National Social Register to facilitate better targeting for social intervention.
“At the federal level, these results will be used to influence the allocation of resources going forward, particularly to target sectors where most citizens suffer deprivations. “The MPI is not our only data on poverty, combining the insights provided by MPI results with data from the income poverty measurement, it provides a holistic picture of poverty and helps to shape the path towards shared prosperity” he said.
According to the president, the multidimensional way of understanding poverty has been helpful in highlighting beyond monetary/income-based poverty measurements, the stark realities of poverty in each state and across the 109 senatorial districts.
The incidence of monetary poverty, he said, is lower than the incidence of multidimensional poverty across most states where 40.1 per cent of people are poor according to the 2018/19 national monetary poverty line, but 63 per cent are multidimensionally poor according to the 2022 Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) report.
Furthermore, the report shows that multidimensional poverty is higher in rural areas, where 72 per cent of people are poor, compared to 42 per cent of people in urban areas.
Buhari explained that globally, people that are most vulnerable to poverty are very often women and children, while commending the report for including child poverty. “It is therefore commendable to see that this report also includes child poverty numbers. Children are a strategic population of concern, as nearly half of all Nigerians are children under the age of 18. Two-thirds (67.5 per cent) of children aged 0–17 are poor according to the National MPI, and half (51 per cent) of all poor people are children.
“This government recognises the importance of the data and the need to deploy it in sharing your story to a broad spectrum of stakeholders, both domestically and internationally.
One way we have started this engagement was at the recent United Nations General Assembly where Nigeria co-hosted the Multidimensional Poverty Peer Network- MPPN– and shared lessons learned from other 100 member countries.
Earlier, the Minister of Budget and National Planning, Prince Clem Ikanade Agba, noted that in spite of the huge national funding, the government still embarked on the survey because of its national importance.
Meanwhile, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Presidential Campaign Council ( PCC), yesterday, berated the All Progressives Congress ( APC) over the latest report by the National Bureau of Statistics ( NBS) indicating that 63 per cent of Nigerians have fallen below poverty level.
The campaign organisation said it is not surprised that with the NBS report, as it is indicative of the alleged failure of the All Progressives Congress ( APC) led administration in the last seven and half years.
