By Ngozi Onyeakusi—Some experts have warned that the year 2022 might be a year of higher inflation if the government fails to address the factors driving high prices. They feared this would lead to businesses shutting down, job losses and crimes, among others. The financial analysts said the recent report by the World Bank that Nigeria will have one of the highest inflation rates in the world in 2022 is based on empirical evidence. The global financial institution said that rising prices will continue to diminish the welfare of Nigerian households and hamper the country’s attempt to achieve economic recovery. It noted that a combination of exchange-rate management problems, trade restrictions, expansionary monetary policies, and the monetary funding of the fiscal deficit will continue to generate inflationary pressures. “Consequently, Nigeria is expected to remain an outlier in Sub-Saharan Africa, with inflation rates only below those of Zimbabwe, Zambia, South Sudan, Angola, Sudan, and Ethiopia,” it said. The Bank, which warned that there is a risk that a continued accommodative monetary policy stance could entrench inflation at an elevated level, well above the upper limit of Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN’s target band, stressed that mounting pressure on the parallel exchange rate will constrain the ability of the apex bank to clear the forex backlog and promote growth via higher investment.