The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has strongly criticized President Bola Tinubu’s administration following the release of the World Bank’s latest report, which states that 139 million Nigerians are now living below the poverty line. The party described the report as an undeniable reflection of the government’s failed economic policies, which they argue have worsened the living conditions for millions of Nigerians.
In a statement issued by ADC’s National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, the party emphasized that the World Bank’s report sheds light on the significant disparity between the government’s optimistic claims and the harsh realities faced by ordinary citizens. The report reveals a stark rise in poverty, with the number of Nigerians living in poverty increasing from 81 million in 2019 to 139 million in 2025.
While the ADC has condemned the report’s findings, the Presidency swiftly rejected the figures, calling them “unrealistic.” Sunday Dare, President Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Media and Public Communication, defended the report’s figures, suggesting that they should be analyzed within the broader context of global poverty assessments. However, the ADC maintains that these government statements are mere attempts to disguise the truth with manipulated data.
“Under the leadership of the APC and President Bola Tinubu, more Nigerians have fallen into poverty than at any other point in the nation’s history,” the ADC stated. “The World Bank’s figures tell a devastating story: in 2019, four out of every ten Nigerians lived in poverty. Today, it’s six out of every ten.”
The party further stressed that, despite the government’s celebratory claims of economic recovery, millions of Nigerians are experiencing profound hardship. Families are skipping meals, children are dropping out of school, and many households are selling assets just to afford basic necessities.
According to the ADC, under the APC-led administration, nearly 30 million Nigerians have descended into “ultra-poverty”—those who cannot afford enough food, even if they spent every penny on it. The rising food inflation, they pointed out, has caused the price of staples like rice to skyrocket by five times in just four years, while poor families now spend up to 70% of their income on food.
The ADC also criticized the government’s failure to adequately support vulnerable populations. It pointed to the collapse of social safety nets, with coverage dropping from 20% in 2019 to a mere 6% in 2025. Furthermore, government spending on social protection is alarmingly low, at just 0.14% of GDP, compared to a global average of 1.5%.
The ADC has called on the Tinubu-led government to abandon its focus on political propaganda and instead focus on the well-being of Nigeria’s citizens. The party urged the government to prioritize food security, job creation, and robust social protection measures to lift the 139 million Nigerians living in poverty.
“The government’s so-called success in revenue generation is an illusion,” said the ADC. “What Nigerians need is not more numbers, but real, substantive reforms that improve their lives. The World Bank’s report shows that Nigerians are growing poorer every day under this government.”
In closing, the ADC demanded that the government cease trying to defend a broken system and instead take immediate action to address the nation’s worsening poverty crisis before it’s too late.
