The Abuja Paradox: Why Falling Inflation Isn’t Bringing Real Relief to Your Household Budget
Nigeria’s official inflation figures are finally easing, showing a technical decline in the food inflation rate. That sounds like good news, right?
But for millions of FCT residents in Abuja, the reality on the ground—or rather, the reality in their shopping baskets—is telling a different story. Despite price corrections in major markets, many families insist they are yet to feel any real economic relief. The simple reason? Stagnant incomes and severely low purchasing power are canceling out every minor price drop.
We dive into the mixed market trends, the residents’ frustrations, and the economic disconnect that continues to squeeze Abuja household budgets.
Market Survey: A Jigsaw Puzzle of Price Movements
A field survey across key FCT markets—including Lugbe, Nyanya, and Orange Market—confirms that while the hyper-inflationary peak might be over for some goods, the price stability needed for true consumer affordability is far from achieved.
Here is what shoppers are seeing:
| Market | Item | Old Price (Approx.) | New Price (Approx.) | Change |
| Lugbe/Orange | Big Bull Rice (50kg) | ₦95,000 | ₦55,000 | Significant Drop |
| Lugbe | Medium Yam (5 Tubers) | ₦15,000 | ₦8,000 | Major Drop |
| Orange Market | Tomatoes (Basket) | ₦7,500 | ₦5,000 – ₦6,500 | Moderate Drop |
| Nyanya | Onions (Basket) | ₦6,000 | ₦3,500 – ₦4,500 | Significant Drop |
| Orange Market | Onions | ₦3,500 – ₦4,000 | ₦4,500 | Slight Increase |
| Orange Market | Pepper | ₦3,500 | ₦5,500 | Price Spike |
While the drops in key staples like rice and yam are substantial, the overall benefit is often offset by sharp increases in other essential items like onions and pepper, leaving FCT residents with little net gain.
The Core Problem: ‘Prices Dropped, But Salaries Haven’t’
For the average civil servant or worker in Abuja, the technical reduction in the Nigeria inflation rate is meaningless because their incomes have not kept pace with the sustained high cost of living.
As Mr. John Okeke, a civil servant, pointedly asked: “If food prices have dropped, are they affordable to the common man? Has transport reduced? Has fuel been reduced? We must consider all these before claiming that the economy is improving.”
The sentiment is clear: high fuel costs translate directly to high transportation fares, which immediately absorb any savings gained from lower commodity prices.
Mrs. Agnes Edoh, a mother of three, lamented the financial pressure on most households:
“The money is still not there to purchase these items. After paying rent, school fees, transportation and other miscellaneous expenses, you will discover you have little or nothing left for household care.”
The urgent call from residents is for the Federal Government to review workers’ salaries and introduce more income-support measures, recognizing that inflation relief must be met with income growth to truly improve welfare.
Expert Analysis: The Mismatch Between Data and Wallet
Economists emphasize that the observed challenge in Abuja is a classic case of the mismatch between nominal price movements and real purchasing power.
Official data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed the headline inflation rate slowing to 18.02% in September 2025 (down from 20.12% in August), with food inflation falling sharply from its September 2024 peak.
However, Dr. Tunde Akinsola, an Abuja-based economist, explains the disconnect:
“Nominal prices might have reduced slightly, but the purchasing power of the average household has not improved. Without income growth or welfare support, the benefits of lower inflation will remain largely on paper.”
In other words, while the pace of price increases has slowed down, the cumulative damage done to family savings and stagnant incomes means that the reduced prices are still unaffordable for most.
The Bottom Line
The government, via the Minister of State for Agriculture, Mr. Aliyu Sabi, attributes the price drops to improved local production and initiatives like dry-season farming. While this explains the easing of supply-side inflation, it does not address the demand-side issue of low purchasing power that plagues FCT residents.
For the majority, true economic relief won’t arrive until salary reviews bridge the massive gap between current earnings and the massively inflated cost of living established over the last two years.
What do you think is the most effective policy—aside from general salary increases—that the government could implement to immediately boost the purchasing power of low-income Abuja residents?
