Delta State government says the latest report released by the Nigeria Bureau of Statistics (NBS), ranking the state second least poor in Nigeria, is a reflection of the “Prosperity for all Deltans” agenda being pursued by Governor Ifeanyi Okowa administration.
The bureau in the living standard survey declared Delta’s second least poor (poverty reduction milestone) after Lagos, rated first least poor state.
Charles Aniagwu, the state commissioner for information, in his reaction, said due to the enabling investment climate created by the Okowa-led government, particularly in oil-bearing communities, Delta had been one of the highest revenue earners from Federation Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC), which also indicated that the state had been putting into judicious use the monies accrued to it.
The bureau, in the latest Poverty Index Report, tagged “Nigeria Poverty and Inequality Survey Report 2019”, released May 5, ranked Delta second after Lagos among the states with low poverty rate and said 40.1 percent of Nigeria’s total population was poor.
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The report revealed that an average of four out of 10 individuals in Nigeria have real per capita expenditures below N137,430 per year, meaning that monthly income of an individual in this category is less than N11,500 while income per day is N383.03.
The report said, “Lagos State has 4.50 percent poverty headcount rate and closely trailed by Delta with 6.02 percent.”
The report translates to over 82.9 million Nigerians considered as poor by national standard while indicating that Sokoto, Taraba, Jigawa, Ebonyi, Zamfara, Yobe, and Adamawa lead the poorest states in the country.
Aniagwu thanked the NBS for conducting the survey 10 years after the last one and for using the consumption expenditures approach in measuring poverty in Nigeria rather than the income approach.
“This particular survey, conducted with support from the World Bank, recorded a clear departure from the previous exercises, especially in the area of methodology where the consumption expenditures approach was adopted.
“With the new national poverty line at N137, 430 or $361 per person per annum, which translates to $0.98 per day and captures about 40 percent of the total population, it shows considerable improvement over the years.
“In the last couple of years, Delta has remained one of the highest earners in the country in terms of crude oil revenues due to the peaceful relations between International Oil Companies IOCs and host communities.
Our desire is for Delta State to come top in the country and also further improve the standard of living of Deltans in line with best global standards, he stated, he said.
