Nigeria, March 12 -- Every time the price of fuel rises, economists reach for technical phrases, "negative supply shocks", "exchange rate pressures", and "global market volatility." But for the ordinary Nigerian, it simply means one thing: life just got harder.

The current surge in global oil prices did not start in Nigeria. It is tied to growing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, particularly conflicts involving countries like Iran and the threat of disruption around the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's most critical oil routes. Nearly a fifth of the world's oil supply passes through that narrow waterway. Whenever tensions rise in that region, global crude prices quickly follow. Within weeks, oil prices can surge past $100 p...