By Okeoghene Akubuike

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) says Nigeria’s headline inflation rate eased further to 22.22 per cent in June 2025.

The NBS disclosed this in its Consumer Price Index (CPI) and Inflation Report for June 2025, which was released in Abuja on Wednesday.

According to the report, the headline inflation showed a decrease of 0.76 per cent compared to the 22.97 per cent recorded in May 2025.

Furthermore, the report said ‘on a month-on-month’, the headline inflation rate in June 2025 was 1.68 per cent, which was 0.15 per cent higher than the rate recorded in May 2025 at 1.53 per cent.

“This means that in June 2025, the rate of increase in the average price level was higher than the rate of increase in the average price level in May 2025.”

The report said the increase in the headline index for May 2025 was attributed to the increase in some items in the basket of goods and services at the divisional level.

It said the three major contributors to the headline inflation on a year-on-year basis were Food and non-alcoholic Beverages at 8.89 per cent, Restaurants and  Accommodation Services at 2.87 per cent, and Transport at 2.37per cent.

The report showed the least contributors were Recreation, Sport, and Culture at 0.07 per cent, Alcoholic Beverages, Tobacco, and Narcotics at 0.08 per cent, and Insurance and Financial Services at 0.10 per cent.

The report said the food inflation rate in June 2025 was 21.97 per cent on a year-on-year basis, which was 18.90 per cent points lower compared to the rate recorded in June 2024 at 40.87 per cent.

“The significant decline in the annual food inflation figure is technically due to the change in the base year.”

It said on a month-on-month basis, the food inflation rate in June was 3.25 per cent, which increased by 1.07 per cent compared to the 2.19 per cent recorded in May 2025.

The NBS said the increase in food inflation was attributed to the reduction in average prices of items such as of Green Peas (Dried), Pepper (Fresh), Shrimps (white dried), Crayfish, Meat (Fresh), Tomatoes (Fresh), Plantain Flour, Ground Pepper, etc.

The report said that “all items less farm produce and energy’’ or core inflation, which excludes the prices of volatile agricultural produce and energy, stood at 22.76 per cent in June 2025, on a year-on-year basis.

“On a month-on-month basis, the Core Inflation rate was 2.46 per cent in June, which increased by 1.36 per cent compared to the 1.10 per cent recorded in May 2025.”

The NBS said for the newly introduced sub-indices, on a month-on-month basis, Farm Produce and Goods stood at -13.3 per cent and 0.93 per cent compared to May 2025, which were 22.38 per cent and 9.39 per cent, respectively.

“Conversely, Services and Energy stood at 3.26 per cent and -11.0 per cent compared to 1.79 per cent and -0.43 per cent recorded in May, respectively.

The report said that on a year-on-year basis in June 2025, the urban inflation rate was 22.72 per cent.

“On a month-on-month basis, the urban inflation rate was 2.11 per cent in June 2025, which increased by 0.71 per cent compared to May at 1.40 per cent.”

The report said in June, the rural inflation rate was 20.85 per cent on a year-on-year basis.

“On a month-on-month basis, the rural inflation rate was 0.63 per cent in June, which decreased by 1.2 per cent compared to May at 1.83 per cent.”

On states’ profile analysis, the report showed that in June, all items index inflation rate on a year-on-year basis was highest in Borno at 31.63 per cent, followed by Abuja at 26.79 per cent and Benue at 25.91 per cent.

It said the slowest rise in headline inflation on a year-on-year basis was recorded in Zamfara at 9.90 per cent, followed by Yobe at 13.51 per cent, and Sokoto at 15.78 per cent.

The report, however, said in June 2025, the inflation rate on a month-on-month basis was highest in Ekiti at 5.39 per cent, followed by Delta at 5.15 per cent, and Lagos at 5.13 per cent.

“Zamfara -6.89 per cent, followed by Niger at -5.53 per cent and Plateau at -4.01 per cent recorded the slowest rise in month-on-month inflation.”

The report said on a year-on-year basis, food inflation was highest in Borno at 47.40 per cent, followed by Ebonyi at 30.62 per cent, and Bayelsa at 28.64 per cent.

“Katsina at 6.21 per cent, followed by Adamawa at 10.90 per cent and Sokoto at 15.25 per cent recorded the slowest rise in food inflation on a year-on-year basis.’’

The report, however, said on a month-on-month basis, food inflation was highest in Enugu at 11.90 per cent, followed by Kwara at 9.97 per cent, and Rivers at 9.88 per cent.

“Borno at -7.63 per cent, followed by Sokoto at -6.43 per cent and Bayelsa -6.34 per cent, recorded the slowest rise in inflation on a month-on-month basis.”

The NBS said based on the recent rebasing of the CPI, hence, the CPI rose to 123.4 in June 2025, which reflected a 2.0 point increase from June 2025.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that the NBS recently rebased the CPI, bringing the base year closer to the current period, from 2009 to 2024, with 2023 as the reference period for expenditure weights.

The Statistician-General of the Federation, Adeyemi Adeniran, said the rebasing was designed to ensure that Nigeria’s economic indicators accurately reflect the current structure of the economy.

According to him, this is done by incorporating new and emerging sectors, updating consumption baskets, and refining data collection methods. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Ekemini Ladejobi

By Martha Agas

The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr Dele Alake, says Africa must rewrite its history powered by its minerals for its local development.

Alake, also the Chairman of the Africa Minerals Strategy Group (AMSG), said this at the opening of the fourth edition of the Africans Natural Resources and Energy Investment Summit (AFNIS) on Wednesday in Abuja.

The summit, holding from Wednesday to Friday, is themed “Harnessing Local Content for Sustainable Development”.

He said that the summit was not just for exchanging ideas but to explore opportunities where Africa can benefit from sustained wealth.

According to him, Africa seeks to build a future where its natural wealth is no longer a statistic in someone else’s report.

“We aspire to a continent where its natural wealth serves as a driving force for industrial growth, equity, and sustainable development.

“In line with the aspirations of Agenda 2063, this gathering marks a decisive step towards a development model anchored on our priorities.”

The minister noted that Africa natural resources held immense potential for meeting sustainable development goals, but must adopt policies such as value addition of its minerals to achieve the feat.

“Local content requires Africa to shift away from exporting raw materials and instead build factories, refine minerals, generate power locally, and create jobs.

“We should be building green industrial zones where gas becomes fertiliser, limestone becomes cement, and lithium becomes battery storage.

“The Dangote industrial complexes in Nigeria already demonstrated what is possible when we prioritise local content and integrate value chains. Let us establish more of such investments across Africa, not just in one city or country, but in every region,” he said.

Alake emphasised that for Africa to achieve sustainable development, it must rely on its own capital and ownership, hence Nigeria’s establishment of the Solid Minerals Development Fund.

According to him, the fund will support small-scale miners, build critical infrastructure, and mitigate investment risk in exploration and processing.

He added that one of the major highlights of 2025 AFNIS would be the formal unveiling of the ‘Africans for Africa Fund’, a bold initiative designed to mobilise African capital for African priorities.

“The launch of the Africans for Africa Fund under AFNIS further reinforces this agenda. We want to see our pension funds, banks, and sovereign funds investing in our extractive future.

“When Africans own the value chain, the benefits multiply. Let this summit be the place where bold commitments are made, and where value addition becomes a shared continental goal,” he further said.

Earlier in his remarks, Hassan Joho, Kenya’s Minister for Mining, Blue Economy, Shipping and Maritime Affairs, said that Africa must take decisive steps to add value to its minerals.

Joho said this would be achieved by engaging in meaningful conversations about Africa’s future using the summit’s platform, adding that Kenya remained committed to implementing value chain extraction.

Similarly, the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, said that as global trends shift toward decentralisation, digitisation, and decarbonisation, Nigeria was working to ensure that local content was beyond a policy slogan.

Adelabu added that the Federal Government was determined to ensure that local content becomes a measurable lever for economic growth, industrial capacity, and energy security.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that ministers of mining from Rwanda, Liberia, Kenya and international delegates from Germany, Australia and UK, among others also presented goodwill messages. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Deborah Coker

By Lucy Ogalue

The ECOWAS Small Business Coalition (ESBC) has lauded the ECOWAS Commission’s Private Sector Directorate, for supporting women traders across the West African sub-region.

Dr Abdulrashid Yerima, President of ESBC, also lauded the ECOWAS’s strong support and strategic backing that contributed to the success of the recently concluded ECOWAS Caravan 2025.

Yerima praised the synergy among regional actors, partners and delegates who took part in the caravan, saying it turned shared challenges into opportunities.

“To the ECOWAS Commission, particularly the Private Sector Directorate, your leadership continues to steer our region toward inclusive and sustainable growth,” he said.

He described the caravan as a transformational milestone in the advancement of women’s cross-border trade across the West African sub-region.

“The ECOWAS Caravan 2025 was more than a series of events, it was a regional movement that highlighted key barriers facing women traders and brought renewed energy to efforts aimed at dismantling them.

“The bridges we build today become the trade routes of tomorrow’s prosperity,” Yerima said.

He emphasised the caravan’s role in galvanising action toward inclusive trade policies and stronger support for small businesses, especially women-led enterprises.

According to Yerima, the Private Sector Directorate’s role in coordinating resources, facilitating partnerships, and amplifying advocacy is crucial to the success of the caravan.

“Your proactive collaboration and unwavering commitment ensured that the voice and mission of the coalition were not only heard but felt across the region,” he said.

The coalition boss said that the caravan helped to forge new alliances, strengthen regional policy dialogue, and inspire collective resolve.

He said this also helped to improve the enabling environment for small businesses and informal cross-border traders.

Yerima said the caravan was a symphony of ideas that must be transformed into long-term regional initiatives and policy reforms to support trade facilitation, remove bottlenecks, and unlock prosperity for women entrepreneurs.

The ECOWAS Caravan 2025 is part of ongoing regional efforts to accelerate the goals of the ECOWAS Vision 2050, which prioritises economic integration, private sector development, and gender inclusion across West Africa. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Mark Longyen