The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) report indicates that Kogi, Rivers, Oyo, and Bauchi states have registered the highest levels of inflation in both food and all items between 2023 and 2024.

The year-on-year basis food and all items report released by the Bureau showed that the food inflation rate in February 2024 rose to 37.92%, showing 13.57% points higher compared to the 24.35% rate recorded in February 2023.

The NBS report stated that food inflation on a Year-on-Year basis as at February 2024 was highest in Kogi State with 46.32%, followed by Rivers State with 44.34% and Kwara State with 43.05%, while Bauchi recorded 31.46%, Plateau recorded 32.56% and Taraba recorded 33.23% as the slowest in food inflation on Year-on-Year basis.

The report stated that “The rise in Food inflation on a year-on-year basis was caused by increases in prices of Bread and cereals, Potatoes, Yam and other Tubers, Fish, Oil and fat, Meat, Fruit, Coffee, Tea, and Cocoa.

“The average annual rate of Food inflation for the twelve months ending February 2024 over the previous twelve-month average was 30.07%, which was a 7.95% points increase from the average annual rate of change recorded in February 2023 (22.12%).”

On an All Items Year-on-Year basis between February 2023 and February 2024, the NBS report stated that Kogi, Oyo and Bauchi states recorded the highest with 37.98%, 36.60% and 35.62% respectively.

The report stated that “All Items Inflation In February 2024, All Items inflation rate on a Year-on-Year basis was highest in Kogi (37.98%), Oyo (36.60%), Bauchi (35.62%), while Borno (26.28%), Taraba (26.72%) and Benue (27.40%) recorded the slowest rise in Headline inflation on Year-on-Year basis.

“The ‘All items less farm produces and energy’ or Core inflation, which excludes the prices of volatile agricultural produces and energy stood at 25.13% in February 2024 on a year-on-year basis; up by 6.76% when compared to the 18.37% recorded in February 2023.”

The NBS stated that “The average twelve-month annual inflation rate was 21.72% for the twelve months ending February 2024; this was 4.97% points higher than the 16.75% recorded in February 2023.

“Accordingly, the weight assigned to a particular Food or Non-Food item may differ from State to State making interstate comparisons of consumption basket inadvisable and potentially misleading.”

On a month-on-month basis, the Bureau stated that the food inflation rate in February 2024 was 3.79%, showing 0.58% higher compared to the rate recorded in January 2024 which was 3.21%.

It stated that “The rise in the Food inflation on a Month-on-Month basis was caused by a rise in the rate of increase in the average prices of Bread and Cereals, Potatoes, Yam & Other Tubers, Fish, Coffee, Tea, and Cocoa.”

According to NBS, Kwara, Kebbi and Adamawa states recorded highest on an All Items inflation while Adamawa, Yobe and Borno states recorded highest on food inflation on a month-on-month basis.

“On a month-on-month basis, the report said that the Core Inflation rate was 2.17% in February. It stood at 2.24% in January, a decline of 0.07%.

“On a Month-on -Month basis, however, February 2024 Food inflation was highest in Adamawa (5.61%), Yobe (5.60%), and Borno (5.60%), while Cross River (2.08%), Niger (2.56%), and Abuja (2.60%) recorded the slowest rise in Food inflation on Month-on-Month basis,” NBS stated.

It further stated that the highest increases were recorded in prices of passenger transport by road, actual and imputed rentals for housing, medical services, pharmaceutical products, etc.