By Rasheedat Abidiesin
At exactly 6:30 a.m., in a small hostel corner inside one of the hostels of Usmanu Danfodiyo University Sokoto (UDUS), Kifayat Salman is already awake with heavy eyes. She bends over a small charcoal stove, fanning the stubborn charcoal that refuses to catch fire. Her pot of water remains still, unmoved by her urgency. By 8:00 a.m., she must be in the Faculty of Law.
But the fire has its own timing.
For the 200 level law student, cooking with charcoal has moved from a daily routine to something that offers no comfort, thanks to the high cost of kerosene, which according to her is above her financial standard.
“Waking up by 6:00 a.m. became the price to make sure I meet up with my everyday 8 to 4 lectures. I wouldn't want to be late to class so I have to wake up early,” she told Digest Press.
Cooking with charcoal has never been her choice. It is simply the last resort after every other means of cooking is out of reach. Yet, this last resort, now widely used by many, has become very expensive. The sudden increase in a nylon of charcoal from N200 to N400 has further pushed students like Kifayat into more hardship.
Nigeria’s rising inflation is one of the forces behind this quiet hardship. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, the country’s inflation rate increased to 15.38 percent in March 2026, up from 15.06 percent in February, ending an eleven month slowdown.
Food prices, which affect students’ daily survival, climbed to 14.31 percent, while transport costs rose even more sharply to 16.9 percent. On a monthly basis, prices jumped by 4.2 percent, the highest increase since January 2025.
“But even when you can afford to use gas, most students, including me, have no choice because the rules of the school do not permit the usage of clean energy like cooking gas which is stress free,” she said.
“Adapting to charcoal is not easy but because there’s no other option, our choices are limited,” Kifayat stated.
A Shared Reality Across Campus
This is not only Kifayat’s experience. Across Usmanu Danfodiyo University Sokoto (UDUS), hundreds of students living in the school hostels face the same reality. Due to school regulations, the use of cooking gas and other faster cooking alternatives is prohibited to prevent fire outbreaks. The only widely permitted option is charcoal.
What used to be the cheapest and most accessible cooking method has now become increasingly expensive, quietly turning into a burden for the very students who depend on it the most.
For many, the problem is not just the rising cost but also the time, stress, and physical effort required to use charcoal, especially for students juggling tight lecture schedules. In UDUS, where faster and cleaner options have been restricted, survival has now become more expensive.
A Frustrated Adjustment
For Maridiyah, a 100 level student, the shock came immediately when she was told she would not be able to use a gas cylinder in the hostel.
Before resuming school, her mother had carefully placed a new gas cylinder among her belongings as part of her preparation. A comfort that never made it to her hostel room.
“My reaction when I found out that it's charcoal I'm going to be using was so disheartening. Hearing that a gas cylinder is not allowed really saddened my heart,” Maridiyah lamented.
Like other students, she also adjusted. However, the adjustment came with a price.
“I starved a lot,” she admitted.
Charcoal: The Expensive Last Option
For Alabi Ismail Habeebullahi, a 200 level sociology student, cooking with charcoal is not only inconvenient but also unreliable.
“I am not comfortable using charcoal but I have no choice. The delay and the struggle to meet up for 8 to 10 classes is another thing too. I have lost count of the days I went to 8 a.m. lectures with an empty stomach because I cannot use charcoal,” he said.
According to him, the price difference is also shocking. He told Digest Press that the same charcoal he buys at home ranges between N100 and N200, but in Sokoto it is N400, and the quality is often poor.
“The Complaints Are Justified” — UDUS Charcoal Vendors
When Digest Press approached one of the charcoal sellers around the Jubril Aminu hostels regarding the rising prices of kerosene and charcoal, Badamosi Adamu acknowledged that students have a right to complain, even though vendors are also affected.
“The students' complaints are well justified but it is not our fault too. Imagine buying 50 bags of charcoal and realizing that most of them are bad, I have to sell them like that to make my money back,” he explained.
Badamosi also pointed out that charcoal is not only expensive, but its quality has declined, as many bags arrive half burnt or ineffective. This often forces sellers to choose between making a loss or passing the loss to buyers.
Beyond Campus Struggles
According to a report by TheGuardian Nigeria, over 20 million Nigerian households continue to rely on firewood and charcoal for cooking. For families already battling rising food and transport costs, buying a gas cylinder is often out of reach.
For a standard 12.5kg cylinder, households now pay between N12,500 and N15,000 for refills, while the cost of acquiring a cylinder has risen sharply to an average of about N80,000, a figure higher than the Nigerian minimum wage.
Like students, many households turn to charcoal not because it is cheap, but because it is the only option they can afford in small portions.
Meanwhile, this growing dependence is quietly creating another crisis. According to a report by Nairametrics, millions of Nigerians still rely on biomass fuels for cooking. Over 70 percent of rural households in Nigeria depend on it as their primary source of cooking energy.
Speaking on this trend, Pius Oko, Country Project Lead at the Africa Coalition for Sustainable Energy & Access, warned that this heavy reliance comes with serious consequences.
“Over 70 percent of rural households rely on firewood for cooking, exposing women and children to serious health risks,” he said.
Oko explained that the continued use of firewood and charcoal contributes to respiratory diseases, environmental degradation, and long term health complications, especially for those constantly exposed to smoke in poorly ventilated spaces.
Data from Global Forest Watch, a platform developed by the World Resources Institute in partnership with the University of Maryland, shows how serious the situation has become.
Between 2001 and 2024, Nigeria lost about 1.4 million hectares of tree cover, with over 250,000 hectares of natural forest disappearing in 2024 alone.
Expert Insight
Yishau Rahman, a health expert from the Environmental Health Office at Ona Ara Local Government, explained the environmental effects of deforestation.
In his words, “Forests are home to countless plant and animal species. When trees are cut down, habitats are destroyed, which leads to extinction or displacement of wildlife. Trees absorb carbon dioxide through the process of photosynthesis. When forests are removed, carbon dioxide remains in the atmosphere, contributing to global warming.”
He added that trees hold soil together, and without them the soil becomes loose and is easily washed away, reducing land fertility. He also noted the increasing risk of flooding.
Yishau also explained ways to reduce deforestation. According to him, there are many ways to reduce deforestation. "Afforestation and deforestation, forest conservation laws, alternative energy sources, agricultural improvement, public awareness and education.
“Agroforestry and sustainable agriculture can be used. Instead of cutting down forests, there are smarter and more sustainable alternatives that meet human needs while protecting the environment,” he said.