Cost of healthy diet highest in South-West, says NBS

The national average Cost of a Healthy Diet per adult in a day has continued to increase, reaching N1,241 per person in June.

A report by the National Bureau of Statistics on Friday revealed that CoHD increased by 19.2 per cent.

According to the NBS, the average CoHD was highest in the South West Zone at N1,545 per day, while the North West Zone was the lowest at N956 per day.

The CoHD per adult has steadily been increasing since January this year. It was N1,041 in May, N1,035 in April, N982 in March, 938 in February and N858 in January.

The NBS’s report on a healthy diet in June reads partly, “The National Average Cost of a Healthy Diet was N1,241 per adult per day in June 2024.

“At the State level, Ekiti, Ogun and Osun states recorded the highest cost with N1,640, N1,599, and N1,557, respectively. Katsina, Kano and Jigawa accounted for the lowest costs with N878, N926 and N937.

“At the zonal level, the average CoHD was highest in the South-West Zone at N1,545 per day, followed by the South-South zone with N1,376 per day.

“The lowest average Cost of a Healthy diet was recorded in North West Zone with N956 per day.

“The Cost of Healthy Diet (CoHD) has been steadily rising over the past six (6) months, since January 2024.

“In June 2024, the CoHD was 45% higher than it was in January 2024 (N858). It was also 19% higher than the cost in May 2024 (N1,041). The main drivers of this increase in CoHD are vegetables, legumes, nuts and seeds, and starchy foods.”

NBS explained that CoHD is the least expensive combination of locally available items that meet globally consistent food-based dietary guidelines, used as a measure of physical and economic access to healthy diets.

“In recent months, the CoHD has risen faster than general inflation and food inflation.

However, the CoHD and the food CPI are not directly comparable; the CoHD includes fewer items and is measured in Naira per day, while the food CPI is a weighted index,”  said NBS.