While Nigeria’s inflation rate appears to be stabilising, experts warn that rising food prices remain the country’s biggest economic challenge, keeping the cost-of-living crisis far from over.

Nigeria’s latest inflation figures may offer some relief on paper, but they tell a more complicated story for millions of households still struggling to afford basic meals.

The Chief Executive Officer of the Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE), Dr Muda Yusuf, has cautioned that although headline inflation slowed slightly in June 2026, the renewed increase in food prices poses a serious threat to economic recovery and household welfare.

In a policy brief released on Thursday, Yusuf said the June Consumer Price Index (CPI) report showed that headline inflation had broadly stabilised, with month-on-month inflation easing from 1.75 per cent in May to 1.66 per cent in June. However, he noted that the apparent improvement masks a worrying trend: food inflation is rising again.

According to him, the rise in food prices suggests that the brief period of moderation witnessed earlier in the year may have come to an end.

Yusuf described food inflation as the single biggest contributor to Nigeria’s ongoing cost-of-living crisis, warning that higher food prices continue to reduce households’ purchasing power, deepen poverty, and worsen food insecurity.

He said the trend also threatens the inclusiveness of the Federal Government’s economic reform programme, as many Nigerians are yet to experience improvements in their daily living conditions.”Sustained moderation in food prices is critical to improving citizens’ welfare and strengthening public confidence in the ongoing reforms,” he stated.

Beyond food prices, Yusuf noted that inflation remains particularly severe in Nigeria’s urban centres. According to the June data, urban inflation stood at 16.08 per cent, higher than the national headline inflation rate of 15.91 percent. Month-on-month urban inflation also increased from 1.99 per cent to 2.13 percent.

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He linked the persistent pressure in cities partly to the growing displacement of people from rural communities affected by insecurity. As more Nigerians relocate to urban areas, demand for housing, transportation, utilities and other essential services continues to rise, placing additional strain on already stretched infrastructure and pushing prices higher.

Yusuf argued that the latest inflation data reinforce the view that Nigeria’s inflation problem is largely structural rather than monetary.

He maintained that tackling insecurity in farming communities would not only improve agricultural production but also help reduce food prices and ease inflationary pressures across the country.

On monetary policy, he said the current inflation trend does not support another interest rate hike by the Central Bank of Nigeria. Instead, he expects the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) to maintain the current Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) at its next meeting.

Rather than relying solely on tighter monetary policy, Yusuf urged greater collaboration between fiscal and monetary authorities to address the root causes of inflation. He called for accelerated reforms aimed at expanding food production, improving transport and logistics, reducing energy and production costs, lowering debt-servicing costs, and strengthening domestic value chains.

While the easing headline inflation rate may signal improving macroeconomic stability, the renewed surge in food prices suggests that many Nigerians are unlikely to feel the benefits until the structural issues driving inflation are effectively addressed.

Meiza Nigeria