Nigeria's headline inflation rate rose to 34.80% in December 2024, up from 34.60% in November 2024, as reported by the National Bureau of Statistics on Wednesday. 

The government agency highlighted this increase in its latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) report, which tracks the changes in prices of goods and services. The December inflation rate reflects a slight uptick of 0.20% from the previous month, attributed to heightened demand for goods and services during the festive season.

On a year-over-year basis, the headline inflation rate was 5.87% higher than the 28.92% recorded in December 2023, indicating an increase in inflation compared to the same month in the previous year.

Additionally, the food inflation rate for December 2024 reached 39.84%, marking a 5.91% rise from the 33.93% recorded in December 2023.

“On a year-on-year basis, the headline inflation rate was 5.87% higher than the rate recorded in December 2023 (28.92%). This shows that the headline inflation rate (year-on-year basis) increased in December 2024 compared to the same month in the preceding year (December 2023).”

In December 2024, the food inflation rate hit 39.84% compared to the same month the previous year, which is a jump of 5.91% from December 2023's rate of 33.93%. 

According to the NBS, this spike in food prices is mainly due to rising costs of staples like yam, water yam, sweet potatoes, beer, guinea corn, maize, rice, bread, cereals, and fish, among others. 

Food and overall commodity prices have surged, leaving Nigerians facing what many consider the toughest cost of living crisis since the country gained independence over sixty years ago. 

When President Bola Tinubu took office in May 2023, Nigeria's inflation rate was at 22.41%. By December 2024, it had skyrocketed to 34.8%, an increase of over 12%. Experts link this surge to Tinubu's policies, including the removal of petrol subsidies and the unification of foreign exchange rates. 

During a joint session of the National Assembly on December 18, 2024, Tinubu unveiled a budget estimate of ₦49.7 trillion and expressed his goal to reduce the inflation rate to 15% by 2025, a target that some economists view as overly ambitious.