At N1,198, cost of healthy diet highest in South West

It costs an average of N1,198 for an adult to have a healthy diet in the South West per day, the highest in the country. This is contained in the latest Cost of a Healthy Diet (CoHD) report for March 2024 released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) yesterday.

The CoHD is the least expensive combination of locally available items that meet globally consistent food-based dietary guidelines. It is used as a measure of physical and economic access to healthy diets.

According to the report, the national average CoHD was N982 per adult per day in March 2024. This is 4.7 per cent higher than the amount recorded in February 2024, which was N938.

While the cost of a healthy diet was highest in the South West In March 2024, the North West recorded the lowest amount at N787 per adult per day. At the State level Ekiti, Lagos and Abia States recorded the highest cost with N1330, N1249, and N1215 respectively, while Katsina accounted for the lowest costs with N739, followed by Sokoto and Zamfara with N758 and N766, respectively.

At the zonal level, the average CoHD was highest in the South West Zone at N1198 per day, followed by the South East Zone at N1140 per day. The lowest average CoHD was recorded in the North West Zone with N787 per day.

The NBS says in recent months, the CoHD has risen faster than general inflation and food inflation. However, it noted that the CoHD and the food CPI are not directly comparable. The CoHD includes fewer items and is measured in naira per day, while the food CPI is a weighted index.