Data analytic platform Picodi.com says that the price of petrol in Nigeria became more expensive – at 163 per cent – in the first six months of 2023.

The report, published on Wednesday, lists the average price for June this year at N532.50, over twice as much as in January (N202.48).

For the Petrol Index 2023 for nine African countries, Picodi revealed that Tunisia has the lowest petrol costs ($0.82/litre), followed by Egypt ($0.37/litre), and Algeria ($0.34/litre).

On the other hand, the report noted that the highest petrol prices to be paid by drivers from Mauritius was ($1.62/litre), Zambia ($1.46/litre), and Kenya ($1.32/litre). In Nigeria, petrol costs $0.89/litre, 13 cents less than the continental average.

President Bola Tinubu announced the removal of the subsidy on petrol during his inaugural speech on 29 May, leading to increase prices by almost 200 per cent, from about N200 to over N500.

While Nigerians bear the brunt of increasing prices, however, many groups have commended the removal, which experts say has drained billions of dollars from the country’s economy.

However, Picodi remarked in its report that the increase does not correspond with the average pay in Nigeria, which is N91,461 net per month, while citing Numbeo data on the cost of living in Nigeria. As a result, the average Nigerian purchases only 172 litres of petrol, ranking ninth out of nine nations.

“We also checked the relation between petrol prices and local average wages.

“With the average wage, the most petrol can be bought by the citizens of countries such as South Africa (968 litres), Algeria (792 litres), and Egypt (396 litres).

According to the newest Numbeo data, the average wage in Nigeria is ₦91,461 net monthly. 

“This means that an average Nigerian can buy only 172 litres of petrol (9th out of 9 countries). Last year, in the same period, the average wage could buy 391 litres (219 litres less). 

“This is what the petrol index in Nigeria looked like in the last 5 years: 2019 – 501 litres; 2020 – 539 litres; 2021 – 431 litres; 2022 – 391 litres; 2023 – 172 litres.”