Presidency Rejects World Bank Report on Poverty, Calls 139 Million Estimate ‘Exaggerated and Misleading’


 The Nigerian Presidency has dismissed a recent World Bank report claiming that about 139 million Nigerians are currently living in poverty, describing the figure as exaggerated and inconsistent with the country’s economic realities.


In a statement released on X (formerly Twitter) on Wednesday, President Bola Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Media and Public Communication, Sunday Dare, said the World Bank’s findings must be “properly contextualised” within the limitations of global poverty assessment models.


“While Nigeria values its partnership with the World Bank and appreciates its role in global development discussions, the figures quoted need proper context — they are unrealistic,” Dare stated.


According to the Presidency, the World Bank’s estimate was based on the global poverty threshold of $2.15 per person per day, a benchmark established in 2017 under Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) standards. The government clarified that this figure does not reflect an actual headcount of poor Nigerians.


It explained that, at the current exchange rate, the $2.15 daily benchmark translates to roughly ₦100,000 per month, far above Nigeria’s new minimum wage of ₦70,000, suggesting that the World Bank’s model is “an analytical projection rather than a true reflection of local realities.”


The Presidency further noted that the assessment relies on outdated data from Nigeria’s 2018/2019 consumption survey and fails to account for the country’s vast informal and subsistence sectors, which sustain millions of households.


“The World Bank’s estimate should not be seen as a real-time poverty count,” the statement added. “It is a global projection that doesn’t represent the current economic recovery Nigeria is experiencing.”


The government reaffirmed its commitment to reducing poverty and promoting inclusive growth, while urging international partners to consider the unique economic structures of developing nations when making such evaluations.


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