Why Yobe Is the Most Affordable State in Nigeria (2025)

The National Bureau of Statistics has named Yobe the most affordable state in Nigeria to live in and travel from, backed by fresh data showing headline inflation easing from 13.5% to 11.43%, while food inflation dipped from 17.9% in June to 15.1% in July 2025. 

The bureau links this trend to stronger agricultural output driven by the State’s Agricultural Empowerment Programme (SAEP) and targeted irrigation projects.

1) Cooling headline inflation is stretching household budgets further

When overall inflation slows, the impact is broad: households feel relief on everyday expenses, from market purchases to transport fares and basic services. Yobe’s fall in headline inflation from 13.5% to 11.43% points to a real improvement in purchasing power. 

For families, that means salaries and daily income now cover more of the essentials; for small businesses, it improves cost planning and protects thin margins. 

Lower, steadier inflation also reduces uncertainty for service providers (transporters, artisans, traders), which can keep price mark-ups in check and make commuting and logistics more predictable. 

In short, the inflation downshift is a tide that lifts many boats at once, and it’s a core reason life in Yobe currently costs less than elsewhere.

2) Food inflation is easing

Food is the biggest line item for most households, so the move from 17.9% to 15.1% food inflation in July matters. 

With food prices rising more slowly, families can buy more with the same naira, and traders face less pressure to keep pushing prices up to cover restocking. This easing suggests supply is meeting demand more reliably, a dynamic reinforced by better harvest availability and ongoing farm investments. 

When staples are plentiful and price shocks are less frequent, affordability improves quickly and visibly at the neighbourhood market. That is exactly the pattern the latest data describes for Yobe. 

3) SAEP is pushing more harvest into markets

According to the NBS summary, the State’s Agricultural Empowerment Programme (SAEP) has boosted the productivity of over 5,300 farmers, “flooding the markets” with last season’s harvest and nudging prices down through higher supply. 

Crucially, farmers are reinvesting those earnings into the current season, amplifying the effect by paying for inputs, labour, and transport. 

This feedback loop matters: when farm output rises and cash cycles back into production, consumers see calmer prices, while rural households gain steadier income. 

That blend of affordability and livelihood support is central to why costs in Yobe are trending lower.

4) More youth and women in agriculture 

SAEP hasn’t just lifted yields; it has also drawn youths and women into the agricultural economy. 

That expands the pool of producers, spreads income opportunities across more households, and strengthens food security from the ground up. 

Wider participation typically supports local processing, storage, and trade, giving communities additional buffers against price spikes. As more people plug into the value chain, the gains are not limited to farms; transporters, vendors, and input suppliers benefit too. 

The outcome is a more resilient, locally anchored food system that helps keep living costs and even commuting costs tied to market runs under control. The Guardian Nigeria

5) Irrigation and input support are lowering production costs and smoothing supply year-round

Yobe’s push into irrigation, targeting the Kumadugu/Yobe River Basins across Bade, Geidam, and Bursari, plus the Nguru wetlands, is designed to reduce the seasonality that often drives food price surges. 

Add to that the distribution of tractors, harvesters, ploughs, tillers, fertilisers, solar-powered irrigation pumps, and pesticides, and you get a cost base that’s easier for farmers to manage and a supply curve that’s more predictable. 

When output is less hostage to the rains and farmers spend less per unit of produce, prices stabilise. The ripple effects show up in cheaper market baskets, lighter transport bills for moving goods, and less volatility for consumers.