About about 67.1 per cent of the country’s total population are living below poverty level, according to statistics from the latest poverty report by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
The report is coming against the background of revelations that the country’s real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate recorded a marginal rise from the 7.40 per cent in the preceding quarter to 7.68 per cent in the last quarter of 2011.The rate was 7.72 per cent in the 2nd quarter of last year.
Ironically, economic analysts have described the rise in the GDP rate as ‘exclusive’ since it has not translated to any real socio-economic gains in terms of unemployment opportunity for the teeming population of youth, poverty reduction and improvement in the general living conditions of the citizenry, which have continued worsen over the past year when compared with previous years.
Analysis on year-on-year basis shows that the 4th quarter growth was far below the 8.60 per cent recorded in the corresponding period of 2010, a development that was attributed to the decline in oil sector productivity as a result of a spate of production shut-ins recorded in the upstream sector during the period under review.
According to the Revised 2010 and 2011 estimates report released by the Bureau, the estimated GDP for the fourth quarter of 2011 was projected at N10.48 trillion as against the N9.5trillion during the corresponding quarter of 2010, thus indicating an increase.
“On the aggregate basis, the economy when measured by the Real Gross Domestic Product, grew by 7.68 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2011, as against 8.60 per cent in the corresponding period of 2010,” the NBS noted.
In 2022, this percentage has risen from 67% to 75 % .
Nigerians are now trying to change the president so as to see the change they want .