• EU says most of world’s poor in Nigeria, commits €45m aid
• Stop campaigning for Tinubu, tackle hardship, HURIWA tells Oyedele

Nigeria’s deepening poverty crisis is shutting millions of citizens out of economic opportunities, shrinking businesses and exposing vulnerable households to insecurity, displacement and worsening living conditions.

The Federal Government, European Union (EU) and ActionAid Nigeria have warned that tackling the crisis requires more than emergency relief, demanding sustainable livelihoods, secure housing, accountable public spending and stronger social protection.

The EU Ambassador to Nigeria and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Gautier Mignot, said Nigeria probably had the highest number of people living below the poverty threshold globally, describing poverty as one of the country’s biggest challenges.

He disclosed that the EU had committed nearly €45 million in humanitarian assistance to Nigeria in 2026, particularly to support conflict-affected and crisis-prone areas.

Meanwhile, the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has criticised the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, over his comments on President Bola Tinubu’s re-election prospects, urging him to focus on addressing the economic hardship facing Nigerians.

The concerns on poverty were raised on Saturday in Abuja at the 2026 International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, held under the theme, ‘United for Peace and Human Rights: Safe Homes for All’.

The speakers included the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, Dr Bernard Doro; Mignot and Country Director of ActionAid Nigeria, Dr Andrew Mamedu.

Mamedu cited World Bank figures estimating that 123 million Nigerians, representing 50.8 per cent of the population, lived in extreme poverty in 2025.

Separately, Doro and Mignot referenced Nigeria’s 2022 National Multidimensional Poverty Index, which estimated that about 133 million people (or 63 per cent of the population) experienced multi-dimensional poverty.

Although the figures measure different dimensions of deprivation and cover different periods, they underscore the scale of Nigeria’s poverty challenge.

For Doro, the crisis is not merely a humanitarian concern but an economic threat that limits productivity, purchasing power and business growth. He warned that widespread poverty was excluding millions of Nigerians from meaningful economic activity, depriving businesses of potential customers and workers.

“When you have 63 per cent of your population living in multi-dimensional poverty, what you’re doing is excluding 63 per cent from economic activation,” he said.

The minister urged the private sector to see poverty reduction as an investment in economic growth rather than a responsibility reserved for government and humanitarian organisations.

The housing challenge also featured prominently in Mamedu’s intervention, with the ActionAid director arguing that a safe home should be regarded as a foundation for human dignity and economic opportunity, not a privilege for the wealthy.

The EU, meanwhile, called for urgent and sustained action, with Mignot warning that neither humanitarian needs nor poverty could be postponed.

He disclosed that the nearly €45 million the EU committed in humanitarian assistance to Nigeria targeted conflict-affected and crisis-prone areas through its European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations.

On its part, the Federal Government is pursuing a coordinated approach through the Household Prosperity and Economic Social Protection Project and the ministry’s One Humanitarian, One Poverty Response System.

Doro said the initiatives were designed to connect humanitarian assistance with social protection, economic inclusion and pathways to self-reliance.

He called for stronger collaboration among federal, state and local governments, development partners, financial institutions, private businesses and civil society organisations, while describing poverty as a major concern for Nigeria’s international partners, stressing that it required urgent attention and sustained commitment in the years ahead.

Mignot commended Doro for his efforts and reaffirmed the EU’s commitment to supporting Nigeria’s poverty reduction drive.

HURIWA accused Oyedele of prioritising political projections about Tinubu’s chances in the 2027 presidential election over the urgent need to tackle rising living costs, high petrol prices, poverty and declining purchasing power.

In a statement yesterday by its National Coordinator, Emmanuel Onwubiko, the association said the minister should concentrate on his economic responsibilities rather than act as a political promoter for the President.

It faulted Oyedele’s suggestion that international investors and financial markets were already anticipating Tinubu’s second term, insisting that Nigerians, rather than foreign investors or global financial institutions, would determine the country’s political future.

HURIWA also questioned the appropriateness of a senior economic official using an international economic gathering to discuss the President’s re-election prospects when millions of Nigerians were struggling to afford basic necessities.

It challenged the Federal Government to explain how it intended to reduce the cost of food, transportation, electricity and other essential services, create jobs and improve workers’ purchasing power.