World Bank Predicts Future: More Nigerians to Slip into Poverty by 2027

Nigeria’s economic future faces another hurdle, as the World Bank predicts a troubling rise in poverty levels by 2027. According to its latest Africa’s Pulse report unveiled during the ongoing IMF and World Bank Spring Meetings in Washington, DC poverty in the country is projected to climb by 3.6 percentage points, painting a sober picture for one of Africa’s largest economies.

While there were glimpses of economic improvement in late 2024, particularly outside the oil sector, the report warns that Nigeria’s longstanding structural issues such as heavy reliance on natural resources and fragile governance threaten to wipe out any progress made.

In a region already carrying the heaviest burden of global extreme poverty, Nigeria, alongside other resource-dependent and conflict-affected countries like the Democratic Republic of Congo, is on a path that diverges starkly from more resilient, agriculturally focused nations in Sub-Saharan Africa. These non-resource-rich nations are reportedly outpacing their counterparts in reducing poverty, fueled in part by strong agricultural exports and more diversified economies.

The World Bank data is grim: as of 2024, 80% of the world’s extremely poor lived in Sub-Saharan Africa, and over half of that population resides in just four countries Nigeria being one of them.

One of the most alarming patterns highlighted in the report is that countries with abundant resource wealth, yet plagued by fragility or conflict, consistently record the highest poverty rates averaging a staggering 46%. This is 13 percentage points higher than what’s observed in more stable, resource-rich nations.

To reverse this trend, the World Bank recommends urgent reforms focused on overhauling fiscal policy, improving transparency, and strengthening the social contract between governments and citizens. Without these interventions, Nigeria risks falling deeper into economic disparity, with millions more potentially pushed below the poverty line in the coming years.