There is a phrase that has become common on the streets of Nigeria today: “We are hungry.” It is said in markets in Jos, in traffic in Lagos, in queues in Kano. It is not a political slogan. It is a daily reality.

For the average Nigerian, the economic narrative of the last three years has not been about GDP growth rates or improved credit ratings. It has been about the price of a bag of rice that has tripled, a transport fare that has doubled, a salary that can no longer last two weeks, and a small business that spends more on diesel than on its own staff.

The government is not wrong to say that tough reforms were necessary. The truth is that the old economic model had collapsed. We were spending more to subsidize fuel than we spent on education, health and infrastructure combined. We were running multiple exchange rates that only enriched rent-seekers. We were borrowing to consume. That path was unsustainable.

But there is a difference between a necessary reform and a well-managed reform. The pain Nigerians are feeling today is not just from the reforms themselves, but from the manner of their implementation and the absence of adequate cushions to protect the most vulnerable.

This editorial is not a call to return to the past. We cannot go back to subsidy. What we need is a clear, credible and compassionate way forward.

Where It Hurts Most:

Three things have combined to squeeze the Nigerian household.
First is the high cost of energy and transportation. The removal of fuel subsidy was done without a robust, ready-to-go alternative. Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) buses, mass transit systems and local refining were promises that are only now beginning to materialize, long after the price shock. When fuel moves from N900 to over N1,400 per litre, every other price moves with it.

Second is food inflation. Nigeria does not have a food production problem alone; it has a food security problem. Insecurity in Benue, Plateau, Niger and other food belts has chased farmers from their farms. Poor storage and bad roads mean that up to 40 percent of what we harvest is wasted. Climate change and flooding have added to the crisis. So even in harvest season, food prices remain high.

Third is the collapse of purchasing power. The naira has found a more realistic level, but wages have not. For civil servants, artisans and small business owners, income is static while expenses have multiplied. The result is a massive expansion of the poverty bracket and a shrinking middle class, which is the engine of any economy.

What Government Must Do Now:

It is not enough to ask Nigerians to be patient. Patience must be accompanied by visible action that shows the government shares in the sacrifice and has a clear plan to ease the burden.

1. Reduce the Cost of Governance

Nigerians cannot be asked to tighten their belts while the political class continues to live large. The government must lead by example. Cut the size of convoys, merge redundant agencies as recommended by the Oronsaye Report, reduce foreign trips, and make budgetary sacrifices at the top. When people see that leaders are also sacrificing, they are more willing to endure.

2. Make Food Security a National Emergency

Declare a genuine state of emergency on food production and security. This goes beyond distributing fertilizer.

Deploy security forces specifically to protect farming communities in the North-Central and North-West so farmers can return to farms. Partner with states to build community storage silos and cold rooms to reduce post-harvest losses. Rehabilitate rural feeder roads to move food from farms to markets cheaply. And support dry-season irrigation farming to ensure we farm all year round, not just during the rains.

If we can secure farms and cut waste, food prices will drop faster than any palliative can achieve.

3. Fix Transportation and Energy for the Poor

The CNG conversion programme must be accelerated from a press statement to a mass reality. Partner with NURTW and private transporters to convert commercial vehicles at subsidized cost and create CNG filling stations along major routes.

Secondly, bring back affordable mass transit. Every state capital should have functional, subsidized BRT buses. This will immediately reduce the transport burden for workers.

On energy, the promise of the Dangote Refinery and other modular refineries must translate to lower pump prices, not just higher production figures. Government should also fast-track the release of grants for small businesses to acquire solar power to reduce dependence on expensive diesel.

4. Support Small Businesses and Youth Directly

Small and Medium Enterprises employ over 80 percent of Nigerians. They are dying under high interest rates and low patronage.

We need single-digit interest loans disbursed through credible channels, not political patronage. We need tax holidays for nano and micro businesses. And we need to patronize Made-in-Nigeria goods in all government procurement, from uniforms to furniture.

The youth need jobs, not just handouts. Expand skills acquisition tied to actual market needs – coding, solar installation, mechanized farming, fashion, film – and link them to starter packs and markets.

5. Make Palliatives Work and Be Transparent

The current palliative approach is failing because it is not reaching those who need it most. The social register is controversial, and cash transfers are often diverted.

We must return to targeted, verifiable palliatives: school feeding that keeps children in school and helps local farmers, direct food distribution through faith-based and community organizations with track records, and conditional cash transfers where beneficiaries are verified with NIN and BVN.

Above all, publish what is spent, where and to whom. Transparency builds trust.

6. Increase Workers’ Take-Home, Not Just Minimum Wage

The new minimum wage was a step, but in a high-inflation environment, wages must be constantly protected. Beyond wage, government can improve workers’ welfare through affordable housing schemes, subsidized health care, and staff buses. The private sector should also be incentivized to increase pay, with tax reliefs for companies that retain staff and improve wages.

As we celebrate another anniversary of our independence from colonial rule, our nation cannot afford to have a majority of its people too hungry to dream and too poor to contribute. Economic reform without human face is economic failure.

The government has taken the hard decisions. Now it must take the smart and compassionate decisions. The way out is not to reverse the reforms, but to make them work for the ordinary Nigerian – the market woman, the okada rider, the farmer, the student, the unemployed graduate.

If the sacrifices of today lead to a productive, secure and inclusive economy tomorrow, history will be kind to this administration. If not, history will record that we had a chance to fix our economy and lost it because we forgot the people at the centre of it.

The time to act, decisively and humanely, is now.