Finance Minister Taiwo Oyedele says the federal government will now track poverty levels and household incomes to measure if reforms are working. That is long overdue.
For years we have governed by press releases and projections. GDP grew, but stomachs shrank. Inflation was “transitory,” but rent became permanent. Without real-time data on what families earn, spend, and lose, policy is just guesswork in agbada.
A proper tracking system could change that. If done right, it tells us which state is bleeding jobs, which subsidy removal actually pushed people below the line, and which palliative reached the market woman in Garki instead of Abuja contractors. It forces ministries to answer to numbers, not narratives.
But data without action is decoration. Nigerians have seen surveys before. The question is: will this tracker be independent, transparent, and updated quarterly? Will it include informal workers, farmers, and gig riders who make up most of our economy? And most importantly, will bad numbers trigger policy reversals?
Reforms must be judged by one metric, is life cheaper and more secure this month than last month?
If Oyedele’s system gives us that answer honestly, then it won’t just measure poverty. It will measure accountability.
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bcradle@ymail.com
