Economic hardship: 191 million Nigerians unable to afford healthy diet – UN

More Nigerians than ever before can no longer afford a healthy diet, with the number rising steadily for nine consecutive years to 191.2 million people in 2025, according to a new United Nations report that paints one of the bleakest pictures yet of the country’s deepening food crisis.

The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI) 2026, published jointly by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), UNICEF, World Food Programme (WFP) and World Health Organization (WHO), found that 80.5% of Nigerians were unable to afford a healthy diet in 2025.

While that represented a slight improvement from 81.6% in 2024, the first decline since the data series began, the country’s rapid population growth meant the actual number of affected people continued to climb, from 189.8 million to 191.2 million.

The report shows a relentless deterioration since 2017, when 68.6% of Nigerians – or 137.5 million people – could not afford a healthy diet.

For Africa’s largest economy and one of the world’s biggest oil producers, the findings underscore how years of rising inflation, currency weakness and soaring food prices have steadily pushed nutritious food beyond the reach of millions of households.

The UN data show a near-unbroken deterioration in Nigerians’ ability to buy healthy food. The proportion unable to afford a healthy diet rose from 68.6% in 2017 to 70.1% in 2019, 78.5% in 2021, 80.9% in 2023, and peaked at 81.6% in 2024, before easing marginally to 80.5% in 2025.

Because Nigeria’s population continues to expand rapidly, the number of people priced out of healthy diets rose every single year – from 137.5 million in 2017 to 191.2 million in 2025.

In practical terms, more Nigerians are struggling to buy nutritious food today than at any point since the UN began tracking the indicator.

Nigeria tops global hunger crisis

The affordability data are accompanied by another sobering distinction. The report identifies Nigeria as the country with the largest number of people experiencing high levels of acute food insecurity in 2025, ahead of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan, Yemen and Afghanistan.

The ranking places Nigeria—despite not being in a nationwide war—alongside countries devastated by prolonged armed conflict and humanitarian emergencies.

The UN attributes Nigeria’s worsening food affordability to a combination of climate shocks, insecurity and economic reforms that sharply increased living costs.

The report notes that widespread flooding in 2022 damaged more than 676,000 hectares of farmland, reducing harvests and putting additional pressure on food supplies.

It also points to Nigeria’s 2023 macroeconomic reforms, including the unification of exchange rates and the removal of petrol subsidies.

According to the report, the naira depreciated by more than 50% within a single quarter following the exchange-rate reforms, while the removal of fuel subsidies sharply increased transportation costs, driving up prices for staples such as maize, sorghum and millet by between 57% and 84% in the months that followed.

Persistent insecurity across northern Nigeria further disrupted agricultural production and food distribution, compounding the pressure on households already grappling with record inflation.

Global progress masks Nigeria’s decline

Globally, the picture was more encouraging. The report found that hunger declined for a third consecutive year, reflecting gradual recovery in many parts of the world.

But Nigeria’s experience moved in the opposite direction. FAO Director-General Qu Dongyu said the global findings showed that progress remained possible but required stronger policy action.

“The report shows that progress is possible, but we must move faster. Ending hunger and making healthy diets affordable requires political commitment, sustained investment and enabling policies.”

IFAD President Alvaro Lario said nearly 2.7 billion people worldwide still could not afford healthy diets, urging governments to invest in resilient food systems and rural economies that make nutritious food more accessible.

WFP Acting Executive Director Carl Skau said the figures represented more than statistics.

“Behind every number in this report is a family counting the cost of food. Conflict and climate shocks push them further beyond their means.”

For Nigeria, however, the report suggests the crisis extends beyond conflict and climate alone. It identifies economic shocks – including currency depreciation and fuel subsidy removal – alongside insecurity and flooding as key drivers that have steadily eroded households’ purchasing power.

The result is a country where, despite producing vast oil wealth and recording periods of economic growth, more than four out of every five people can not afford the healthy diet needed for proper nutrition.