According to data from the World Population Review, Nigeria has the world’s second-highest number of homeless people. 24 million Nigerians do not have homes, accounting for nearly 10% of the total population. The statistics exclude those not living in a proper home with access to some of the most basic services. Several factors contribute to the high number of homeless persons, including a shortage of affordable housing options, land ownership and usage, economic exploitation, and unequal distribution of wealth and resources within the country. Homelessness is widening social inequality and vulnerability to health issues, which could worsen the humanitarian crisis in the country. Hence, there is an urgent need to prioritize the construction of affordable housing units tailored to the needs of low-income earners, in order to make homeownership accessible to all. In addition, to ensure renters' rights and stabilise the housing market, robust legal protections for tenants, such as safeguards against forced evictions and arbitrary rent increases, should be implemented. Furthermore, the government should enforce land use policies that encourage equitable land allocation for housing purposes, while also addressing land access and ownership issues. Collectively, these measures can help mitigate the housing crisis, improve living conditions, and create a more equal and stable housing market in Nigeria.

According to the World Bank, the Nigerian currency (naira) has depreciated by almost 40% since the beginning of 2023. The depreciation is not only limited to Nigeria. Other African countries' currencies also depreciated, although at a low rate. The top five worst-performing currencies identified by the World Bank are Nigeria (40%), South Sudan (33%), Burundi (27%), the Democratic Republic of the Congo (18%), and Kenya (16%). Nigeria operates multiple exchange rates: the official rate and the parallel rate.

According to the latest Transport Fare Watch of the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), transportation costs increased significantly in August 2023. The average fare paid by bus passengers within the city increased by 121.81% year-on-year from N602.48 in August 2022 to N1,336.38 in August 2023. Similarly, the average fare paid by commuters for intercity bus journeys rose by 56.6% year-on-year from N3,779.96 in August 2022 to N5,918.18 in August 2023. The rising transport costs could be attributed to the removal of subsidies on petrol. While the development is expected to improve the government's fiscal position, it imposes a heavy financial burden on citizens.

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) publication on Terms of Trade (TOT) shows a deterioration in Q2 2023. Term of Trade measures the relative price of imports to exports. In April, it was 100.8 and reduced to 100.72 in May. It further reduced to 100.67 in June. As a result, TOT reduced by 0.13 percent on average in Q2 2023.

Data from the September 2023 report of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)
shows that Nigeria’s oil output rose by 9.3% from 1.08 mb/d recorded in July to 1.18 million barrels per day (mb/d) in August 2023. However, oil output still falls short of the 1.74 mb/d quota allocated to Nigeria by OPEC and far below the 1.69 mb/d assumed in the 2023 budget. In June 2023, OPEC reduced Nigeria’s future quota by over 20% from 1.74 mb/d to 1.38 mb/d , and the new quota will become effective from January 2024 if the output level remains low. This data on crude oil production indicates that Nigeria is not getting the maximum fiscal buffer associated with the recent rise in crude oil, which is above $90 per barrel.

According to the rail transport data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in Q2 2023, the volume of goods/cargos transported for Q2 2023 reached 56,029 tons, compared to 31,197 tons in Q2 2022, showcasing a substantial growth trend. Similarly, goods/cargo revenue collected in Q2 2023 was N188.03 million, up by 105.04% from N91.70 million in Q2 2022. 

According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) report on Foreign Trade in Goods for the second quarter of 2023, total trade stood at N12.7 trillion, a decline of 7.6% from N13.8 trillion recorded in Q2 2022. Both imports and exports experienced a decrease in year-on-year changes; however, the rate of decline was higher for imports. 

Systematic, quantitative evidence on education system coherence is limited. Prior research has indicated alignment of instructional components, such as curriculum standards, assessments, and teachers’ instruction, is important for children’s learning. This study uses the Surveys of Enacted Curriculum methodology to investigate alignment of instructional components in Nigeria's primary education system. The study analyzes curriculum standards, national exams, and classroom instructional content for mathematics and English language across all six primary-level grades. We find that key foundational mathematics and English language skills are covered by all three components, with some notable omissions on the end-of-cycle English language exams. All three components give high emphasis to the low cognitive demand processes of ‘memorize’ ‘perform’, and ‘demonstrate’, and give very low emphasis to the more demanding cognitive processes of ‘analyze’ and ‘apply to non-routine situations’. Both the curriculum standards and classroom instruction depict a slow pace of content progression across grades, manifested through broad but shallow content coverage. The high alignment suggests the potential for a well-functioning education system, however, low student performance in mathematics and English language exams suggest otherwise. The findings suggest the Nigerian primary education system may be operating in a low-achieving equilibrium in which the system is aligned for low levels of cognitive demand and student mastery.

This Working paper was first published here .

Authors: Adedeji Adeniran, Sixtus Onyekwere, Anthony Okon, Julius Atuhurra, Rastee Chaudhry and Michelle Kaffenberger

According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 2.51% (year-on-year, YoY) in real terms in the second quarter (Q2) of 2023. This growth rate is less than the 3.54% recorded in the Q2 2022 and is primarily driven by the services sector, which recorded a growth rate of 4.42 percent in the period and contributed 58.42 percent to the aggregate GDP.