CYRIACUS IZUEKWE
The generator in Egbeda has been off for 6 hours. In a 1-room apartment, Aisha Bello, 34, balances a torchlight on a textbook while her 10-year-old son reads.
It’s 11:47pm. She has been awake since 5:30am.
“I am mother and father,” she whispers, so she doesn’t wake the 2 younger ones on the mattress beside her. “But some nights, I don’t know how I’m doing both.”
Aisha is a widow. She is also 1 of an estimated 4.2 million single parents in Nigeria in 2026, according to the National Social Register update.
For them, 2026 is not just another hard year. It is a year of impossible choices.
SECTION 1: THE NUMBERS DON’T LIE
Nigeria’s economy in 2026 is squeezing everyone. But data shows single-parent homes are hit hardest.
The NBS Consumer Price Index for July 2026 puts food inflation at 31.2%. A 50kg bag of rice that sold for N56,000 in January now costs N65,000.
The National Parents Teachers Association survey released in August shows average private school fees rose 25% this year. Public schools are overcrowded.
And the World Bank Nigeria Economic Report, June 2026 found that 63% of Nigerian households are cutting meals to pay for basic needs. For single-parent households, that figure rises to 78%.
“When you are alone, there is no one to split the bill with,” said Dr. Titi Jacobs, a sociologist at the University of Lagos. “One person is paying rent, school, hospital, food. The math fails every month.”
SECTION 2: “CHOOSE: SCHOOL FEES OR FOOD”
Mr. Chinedu Okoro, 41, works 12-hour night shifts as a security guard in Enugu. Salary: N80,000.
He has 2 boys, 9 and 12.
“Last term, I paid N120,000 school fees,” he said. “This term, the school sent a letter: N150,000. No installment.”
“So I sat my boys down. I said: ‘This month, we will eat rice only on Sunday. The rest is garri. So you can go to school.'”
Chinedu’s wife left in 2023. “She said she couldn’t manage. I don’t blame her. But the children are mine.”
When his daughter had malaria last month, he spent N18,000 at a chemist. “That was my transport for 3 weeks. I trekked from Asaba Road to Ogui.”
He is not alone. A 2026 report by WARDC – Women Advocates Research and Documentation Centre found only 6% of single mothers accessed any government palliative in the last 12 months.
“We are invisible in the system,” said WARDC Executive Director, Dr. Abiola Akiyode-Afolabi.
SECTION 3: THE STIGMA AND THE LANDLORD
For women, the burden comes with judgment.
Fatima Sule, 29, sells akara by the roadside in Kano. She has a 4-year-old daughter. The father is “not in the picture.”
“Landlords hear ‘single mother’ and they increase rent,” Fatima said. “They think you will run away. Or bring men.”
She pays N180,000 yearly for a room with shared toilet. “Before, it was N120,000.”
Fatima wakes at 4am to fry. By 8pm she’s home, too exhausted to count the day’s N4,000 profit.
“Sometimes I cry in the bathroom so my daughter doesn’t see. Then I wash my face and smile.”
SECTION 4: THE CHILDREN IN THE MIDDLE
The agony is not just financial. It’s emotional.
Mrs. Ngozi Eze, a counselor in Lagos for 14 years, says she’s seeing a spike in 2026.
“Children of single parents come with anxiety,” she said. “They hear ‘we have no money’ too often. They become adults at age 10.”
She told the story of a 13-year-old girl who told her: “Aunty, don’t tell mummy, but I skipped lunch so my brother can eat.”
“That is the silent agony,” Mrs. Eze said. “Parents are breaking, and children are pretending not to see.”
SECTION 5: “BUT WE KEEP GOING” – RESILIENCE
Yet, there is grit.
Aisha does 3 jobs. Phone accessories by day. POS transfer by night. Hair braiding on Sundays.
“I made N42,000 last month,” she said. “Rent is N250,000. School is N90,000 per term. Do the math.”
“My prayer is simple: God, don’t let my children beg. Don’t let them drop out.”
In Onitsha, there’s a WhatsApp group called “Single Parents Support 2026.” 300 members. They share job leads, free textbooks, and sometimes N1,000 for data.
“We are each other’s husband and wife,” said admin, Blessing Okoye, a single mother of 3.
SECTION 6: WHAT NEEDS TO CHANGE
Experts say Nigeria needs targeted policy.
Dr. Jacobs recommends:
1. Single-Parent Education Grants – direct payment to schools
2. Healthcare Subsidies – NHIS expansion for single-parent homes
3. Soft Loans- N500,000 with 3% interest for small businesses
“These people are raising the next generation alone,” she said. “If we fail them, we fail Nigeria in 10 years.”
For now, there is no such policy.
KICKER
Back in Egbeda, Aisha turns off the torchlight. The children are asleep.
She sits in darkness for 5 minutes. No TV. No light. Just silence.
Then she stands up. She has to set her alarm for 5am.
“I’m tired,” she said. “But I can’t stop. Who else will?”