Renowned author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie has lamented Nigeria’s worsening economic hardship, saying it has forced many middle-class citizens to beg for survival.

In an interview with Channels Television, she described the situation as “deeply troubling,” noting that people who once lived stable lives are now struggling to meet basic needs.

“Life has become so hard in Nigeria, and me I can see it,” she said. “People who were formerly kind of securely middle class—not that life was rosy for them—but they got by, are now people who beg and are in need. That worries me greatly.”

The award-winning novelist emphasized that a government’s true performance should be measured by the quality of life of its citizens, not just economic data.

“The level of suffering, how expensive food has become… I think the biggest political judgment one can make is about the lives of ordinary people,” she said.

Chimamanda also wondered how Nigerians on minimum wage are surviving amid the rising cost of living.

“I don’t really care about things like the stock market. What I care about is that person earning minimum wage—how is that person surviving in this economy?” she asked. “It’s the suffering that worries me the most. And it’s terrible.”

“It’s not to excuse crime,” she said, “but when life gets very hard, even people who before would not have considered certain things suddenly are willing to, and that’s dangerous to society.”