Former Kaduna Central Senator and APC chieftain, Shehu Sani, has taken aim at the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF), accusing them of fueling Nigeria’s deepening poverty crisis through harmful economic recommendations disguised as reforms.
Global lenders’ report on Nigeria’s poverty crisis
According to recent data from the World Bank’s Poverty & Equity Brief, poverty and inequality in Nigeria have worsened significantly in recent years.
The report revealed that since 2018/2019, over 45 million Nigerians have fallen into poverty, with the national poverty rate projected to reach 47% in 2024. In rural regions, the figure is even higher; about 75.5% of residents reportedly live below the poverty line.
Among children aged 0–14, the poverty rate stands at a staggering 72.5%, further exacerbated by inequalities in education, gender, and location.
Similarly, the IMF noted that between 2014 and 2023, Nigeria’s real per capita GDP fell by an average of 0.7% annually, with poverty affecting about 42% of the population as of 2023.
The World Bank cautioned that without tackling deep-rooted issues such as weak institutions, oil revenue instability, and inflation, more Nigerians could sink into poverty in the coming years.
Shehu Sani slams the World Bank and IMF
Reacting to the reports, Shehu Sani blasted the global financial institutions, calling them the “Witches and Wizards” of the global economy.
“The World Bank and IMF are the witches and wizards who tell you to remove subsidies and float your currency in the ocean, promising prosperity—but when poverty and hardship follow, they blame you for taking the wrong dosage,” he wrote on social media.
Sani accused the lenders of promoting one-size-fits-all economic formulas like fuel subsidy removal and currency liberalization that disregard local realities and leave developing nations like Nigeria worse off.
He argued that instead of lifting countries out of poverty, such policies have intensified economic hardship and widened inequality, while the institutions conveniently shift the blame back to the affected governments.
