General
Nigerian Consumers Highly Price Conscious—Study
‘Money’s too tight to mention’ for Nigerian shoppers who are highly price conscious and are taking several measures to mitigate rising food prices including cutting down on luxury items and buying in bulk to benefit from lower prices. These are just some of the findings from Nielsen’s latest 2019 Nigeria Shopper Trends Report.
Nielsen Consumer Insights Lead for West Africa Abiodun Olawale-Cole says; “Nigerian shoppers have become more cautious with their spend, they are pre-planning their category choices prior to shopping visits and once in store; mostly buying essentials and switching to cheaper brands.
“Factors impacting these choices include the fact that they’re increasingly shopping with a limited budget and are keen on low prices. In addition, a high number of shoppers notice price changes and most think prices are on the rise.”
Despite their concerns around price, Nigerian shoppers are experimental when it comes to trying new stores and will visit a new outlet in the area. Though motivated for initial visits, this is not seeing shoppers move past the trial stage of the shopping journey and is not converting them to loyalists.
Olawale-Cole suggests; “Retailers and manufacturers must consider the current shopper mindset when it comes to product pricing and strive to meet the needs and wants of a price conscious and deal-seeking shopper to improve loyalty and secure higher spend.”
Modern trade gains ground
Looking at the evolving roles of Modern Trade (MT) e.g. branded supermarkets and stores versus Traditional Trade (TT) e.g. non-branded stores, table-tops and kiosks within the Nigerian retail space, Olawale-Cole says that MT is starting to gain a foothold with a total value share of around 5% of FMCG sales.
“More than 90% of FMCG sales within Nigeria still take place within TT outlets in terms of value and volume and we don’t see that changing much in the next 12-months, however, we do expect significant growth in MT within the next five years.”
“Where we are seeing a lot of growth is in the number of physical MT stores with a number of local branded supermarkets opening e.g. Adide, as well as international chains such as Shoprite and Spar having bolstered the market. The percentage of spend has also almost doubled in Supermarkets compared to 2 years back (17% in 2017 to 33% in 2019), signalling more acceptance of modern trade in the country.”
The Nielsen Shopper Trends study found that Nigerian shoppers mainly use TT for their top up shops, so frequency of visits to these types of stores is understandably higher. Their main reason for visiting MT stores is for bulk shopping with spend normally much higher for this type of trip and visits to supermarkets averaging four times a month, while visits to convenience stores average nine times a month.
Convenience is key
Olawale-Cole elaborates; “Nigerians are starting to shop at Modern Trade outlets more; with one of the key drivers of this behaviour being the convenience of a one stop shop. This is evidenced by the fact that Convenience Stores have the highest monthly footfall within the MT category, with average shopper visits more than double that of Supermarkets.
It’s important to note that Traditional Trade (TT) also offers convenience in the form of close proximity to home and office and still provides better pricing on certain items but Olawale-Cole says; “In line with consumers’ need to simplify their lives, we foresee urban MT retail outlets e.g. supermarkets, growing their share of trade in Nigeria, as consumers become more willing to pay for the convenience and time saving benefits of one stop shop solutions.” Evidence of this is that larger independent MT stores are already gaining ground in Nigeria’s urban areas, with formats offering a combination of large and small stores.
Overall, the growing demand for convenience presents manufacturers and retailers with countless opportunities.
Olawale-Cole comments; “Today, convenience transcends products, services and store channels. Packaging innovation, route to market, storage, portability and ordering, as well as device, payment and application technologies all need to be key considerations in providing an overall convenience experience that appeals to the discerning Nigerian shopper.”
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has explained why it initiated a move to freeze the bank account of the Osun State government.
Earlier on Wednesday, the Governor of Osun State, Mr Ademola Adeleke, claimed that the anti-money laundering agency asked one of its bankers, First Bank, not to release funds to the state government.
According to the Governor, this was part of the strategies to frustrate his administration ahead of the August 15, 2026, governorship election in the state.
Reacting to the issue on Wednesday night, the EFCC, in a statement, said it has been investigating the state government since March 2026 over an alleged “fraudulent handling of Ecology Funds, Intervention Funds and Federal Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) account to the tune of N11.0 billion.
The organisation noted that some officials of the state government, especially the Accountant General of the State, have had interview sessions with investigators of the EFCC.
“These ongoing investigations of the state government would not have warranted any placement of Post No Debit order on its account but for the precipitate and unwarranted movement of funds from the accounts to different suspicious accounts since August 2, 2026.
“The commission noticed huge transfers of funds into different corporate entities and had to swiftly halt the trend by freezing the accounts from which such heavy funds are being moved,” parts of the statement said.
In the disclosure, the agency noted that its preventive mandate is a public-inclined framework of safeguarding public funds, assets and resources, stressing that it cannot “watch idly while a state government’s account is being pillaged.”
“While the commission is fully aware of the impending governorship election in Osun State, it has a responsibility to act in defence of the sanctity of the funds of the state. It will be uncharitable for the commission to allow an excuse of an upcoming election to fold its arms to perform its legally-assigned functions,” it pointed out.
The EFCC disclosed that it is “keeping watch over the finances of other states like Osun State. Many of these states are on the investigative radar of the commission to ensure accountability and probity. The commission has always pointed out that it is non-partisan and non-sectarian but always working in the overall interests of Nigerians. The Osun State government account was frozen to save public funds from being looted.”
The organisation urged the public “to ignore false narratives and deliberate demonisation of the works of the EFCC. The interests of all Nigerians are greater and will always be protected by the commission.”
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has launched a mobile application designed to monitor fuel consumption patterns in real time across retail outlets nationwide.
The NMDPRA, established under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021, is responsible for the technical and commercial regulation of Nigeria’s midstream and downstream petroleum operations. The deployment of the mobile application aligns with the authority’s broader efforts to leverage technology to improve regulatory compliance and strengthen accountability.
The pilot phase of the project began on August 1 in Abuja and its six Area Councils, the authority said in a statement published on X.
As part of the rollout, the Executive Director for Distribution Systems, Storage and Retailing Infrastructure (DSSRI), Mr Ogbugo Ukoha, led a team alongside officials from the Abuja Regional Office to assess the readiness and operational performance of the digital platform at participating retail outlets.
According to the NMDPRA, the application captures inventory and compliance data in real time, enabling regulators to monitor fuel distribution more effectively while improving operational efficiency across the sector.
The authority said the platform would generate reliable, data-driven insights to support evidence-based decision-making, strengthen national energy security planning and enhance transparency in the downstream petroleum industry.
It added that the initiative is expected to provide significant value to government, investors, operators and other stakeholders by improving access to accurate fuel consumption and compliance data.
Nigeria’s downstream petroleum sector has undergone significant changes since the deregulation of the petrol market and the removal of fuel subsidies, with regulators placing greater emphasis on data-driven supervision to ensure product availability, prevent supply disruptions and discourage sharp regional disparities in distribution.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
No doubt, moving money among African markets remains a slow, fragmented process that relies on multiple intermediaries and prolonged settlement cycles.
To solve this issue and drive the development of stablecoin-enabled payment services for businesses across the continent, Onafriq has joined forces with a leading stablecoin infrastructure provider, Privy.
The collaboration will enable Onafriq to create and manage embedded digital asset solutions for its partners and, in time, institutional clients where regulation allows. The initial phase focuses on cross-chain stablecoin transfers and treasury and settlement workflows, creating the foundation for future cross-border payment and liquidity solutions.
Integrating Privy’s secure infrastructure enables Onafriq to build the capabilities required to support a new generation of efficient digital payment services for banks, fintechs, and mobile money operators.
This partnership is a key component of Onafriq’s broader strategy to modernise pan-African payment infrastructure, enabling secure multi-modal wallets and more efficient movement of value across the continent.
The outcome will support a range of future institutional use cases, including stablecoin-enabled settlement, treasury management and liquidity services, as it reflects Onafriq’s commitment to driving Africa’s digital transformation agenda by investing in technologies that make financial services more efficient, connected and accessible.
It was gathered that Onafriq selected Privy for its enterprise-grade infrastructure to enable the seamless integration of digital asset wallet capabilities into its products, subject to regulatory approval, and deliver a simple user experience while abstracting the complexity of blockchain technology.
“At Onafriq, we keep investing in technology that makes payments faster and more accessible. Privy gives us a building block for faster settlement and better liquidity management. As demand for digital asset services grows, our goal is to ensure Africa’s payment ecosystem benefits securely and in line with regulatory frameworks,” the Group Chief Product and Innovation Officer at Onafriq,” Mr Luke Kyohere, said.
The chief executive of Privy, Mr Henri Stern, said, “Stablecoins will play an increasingly important role in the future of global payments, but real-world adoption depends on infrastructure that is secure, scalable and simple to implement. Working with Onafriq allows us to help build that foundation across Africa and beyond.”
