Under President Bola Tinubu’s administration, Nigeria’s multidimensional poverty rate soared to the highest level among countries assessed in 2026, making the country the world’s multidimensional poverty capital, a recent report showed.

Findings by the United Nations Development Programme and Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative showed that multidimensional poverty increased in five countries: Afghanistan, Nigeria, the Central African Republic, Kyrgyzstan and Guinea, the report stated.

Of the five countries, Nigeria recorded the highest increase, with its multidimensional poverty rate rising from 33 per cent in 2021, during the late Muhammadu Buhari’s administration, to 38.7 per cent in 2024, after Mr Tinubu assumed office.

According to the UNDP, multidimensional poverty represents not only the absence of income but also the deprivation of a good life based on indices such as education, health, housing, nutrition, sanitation, and access to basic services.

The report found that many Nigerians still lacked electricity and that households owned only one of the assets like a television, radio, telephone, computer, bicycle, or car, evidencing a dimension of poverty.

“The household does not own more than one of these assets: radio, television, telephone, computer, animal cart, bicycle, motorbike or refrigerator, and does not own a car or truck,” the report explained.

Zambia, Egypt, Nepal, Angola and Tajikistan recorded significant reductions in their poverty rate.

The elimination of fuel subsidy drove the majority of already-struggling Nigerians into extreme poverty. Mr Tinubu’s naira devaluation and free float, which allowed market forces to determine foreign exchange rates, caused the naira to free-fall into dire straits and trade above N1,000 to a dollar for the first time.

The fuel subsidy announcement also triggered inflation that jacked up prices for essential goods and household items and roiled an economy which hasn’t recovered from the policy.

Amid rising poverty, Mr Tinubu’s administration announced the reintroduction of fuel subsidy in government-backed Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) stations to cushion the impact of fuel supply pressures. Under the arrangement, petrol would be sold at N1,350 per litre.

Mr Tinubu is seeking a second term at the nation’s presidential elections scheduled to be held in January 2027. His administration did not immediately comment on the UNDP and Oxford University multidimensional poverty index.