By John Audu.
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has reported that Nigeria’s headline inflation rate increased to 24.23% in March 2025, up from 23.18% in February. This rise signals a return to levels last seen at the beginning of the year, following the recent rebasing of the consumer price index (CPI).
In its announcement on Tuesday, the NBS indicated that the March inflation rate reflects an increase of 1.05% compared to the previous month. On a month-on-month basis, inflation for March stood at 3.90%, marking a significant rise from 2.04% in February.
“This indicates that the average price level’s increase in March 2025 outpaced that of February 2025,” the report stated.
The NBS attributed the rising inflation rate primarily to the costs of food, transportation, and accommodation services.
Food Inflation Hits 21.79%
The report revealed that food inflation reached 21.79% year-on-year in March 2025. On a month-on-month basis, food inflation rose by 2.18%, an increase of 0.50% compared to February’s rate of 1.67%.
This surge in food prices is largely driven by rising costs of essential items, including fresh ginger, garri, broken rice, natural honey, crabs, potatoes, plantain flour, unshelled peri-winkle, and fresh pepper.
According to the NBS, food inflation varied significantly across states. Oyo recorded the highest year-on-year food inflation at 34.41%, followed by Kaduna at 31.14% and Kebbi at 30.85%. In contrast, Bayelsa (9.61%), Adamawa (12.41%), and Akwa Ibom (12.60%) experienced the slowest increases in food inflation.
On a month-on-month basis, Oyo again led with the highest food inflation rate at 19.74%, followed by Kaduna at 17.24% and Kebbi at 14.03%. Conversely, states such as Sokoto (-14.10%), Nasarawa (-9.91%), and Edo (-5.78%) saw declines in their food inflation rates.
As Nigeria grapples with rising prices, the impact on households and the broader economy continues to raise concerns among citizens and policymakers alike.
