Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Economic Affairs, Dr. Tope Fasua, has said that while the naira may be weak against the dollar, Nigerians can still buy food with as little as N1,000—unlike in the United States, where $10 is not enough for a decent meal.
Fasua made this statement during an interview on the *MicOnPodcast* hosted by Seun Okinbaloye. He explained that poverty measurements used globally often confuse people, especially when it comes to the idea of multi-dimensional poverty.
“Some people don’t understand the meaning of multi-dimensional poverty,” Fasua said. “They think multi-dimensional poverty is worse than food poverty. What multi-dimensional means is that maybe the school your children attend is too far from you, or the hospital, and they categorise you as multi-dimensional.”
He noted that even though $1 now equals about N1,500, many Nigerians still find value in the naira because the cost of living in Nigeria is different from that of developed countries.
“$1 is N1,500 – it’s a lot of money for many people in Nigeria. $10 won’t buy you lunch anywhere in the U.S., sometimes you need at least $20, that is N30,000 in Nigeria,” he said.
Fasua gave examples of how ordinary people in Nigeria can still afford meals with smaller amounts of money.
“I will tell you what you can do with $5 – that is N7,500 – if you are not going to eat in some eyebrow places. In Gwarinpa, there are some people that sell Boli and fish and you will eat for N1,500. If you know where you are coming from,” he explained.
The presidential adviser’s comments come at a time when many Nigerians are struggling with the rising cost of food and living expenses, sparking conversations about the real value of the naira and the government’s approach to tackling poverty.
