Ezra Takyun
Over the years, Nigeria has faced a lot of challenges that brought about instability in virtually all the sectors of its economy. The agricultural sector has also been greatly affected causing a drastic rise in the prices of food items and worsening standards of living. The Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO) defined food insecurity as the lack of regular access to enough safe and nutritious food for normal growth and development for an active and healthy life, due to unavailability and/or lack of resources to obtain food.
Food insecurity is centered on four key pillars, which include availability, affordability, quality and safety, as well as sustainability and adaptation. As at the second quarter of 2023, 17 million (45%) people were faced with food insecurity, with this number estimated to increase to 25 million by the end of 2023. Out of this number, 3 million were from states in the North-East region. 2.9 people were by estimation at the risk in the North-West region. Notably, children are impacted the most with malnutrition rate rising to 2 million in the North-East in 2023, posing a risk of high child mortality triggered by acute malnutrition.
However, the primary drivers of food insecurity in Nigeria include: persistent conflicts, climate change, inflation, and the escalating prices of food items. In the North-East and North-West regions, armed banditry, kidnapping, and violence perpetrated by insurgent groups like Boko Haram and ISWAP significantly contributed to regional food insecurity.
Concurrently, the North-Central region grapples with the longstanding farmers-herders crisis, further impacting overall food production. The southern part of the country has also seen rising spate of insecurity which had forced farmers away from farms. Moreover, widespread flooding poses a substantial threat to food security in Nigeria, as exemplified by the 2022 flood that damaged over 676,000 hectares of farmland, resulting in decreased food production and a heightened state of food insecurity.
According to the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), the number of people at risk of food insecurity over a seven-year period is consistently rising from 68.3 million in 2016 to a staggering 148.7 million in 2022. This progression underscores the urgent need for targeted interventions and sustainable strategies to address the escalating challenges of food insecurity in Nigeria.
While efforts by the government aimed at tackling food insecurity are acknowledged, an agricultural expert, Innocent Yiraih, is pained that the measures are not yet enough to be able to change the ugly reality. She highlighted some causes of food insecurity bedevilling the country.
“They include: the incessant farmers-herders clashes, poor infrastructure affecting distribution and storage of agricultural produce, climate change leading to unpredictable weather patterns and reduced agricultural productivity, insufficient investment in agricultural research and development as well as land degradation and soil erosion”.
“The situation leads to reduced agricultural output and income for farmers, increased vulnerability to climate shocks, limited access to markets due to poor infrastructure as well as loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services,” she said while proffering likely solutions to food insecurity.
“Solutions include: improved irrigation systems and water management techniques, while sustainable agricultural practices must be promoted. Government must invest in research and development of drought-resistant crops while extension services are strengthened to educate farmers on modern farming techniques”.
For his part, an economist, Innocent Awalame, lamented that food insecurity is just one out the many economic woes befalling the country. “Without productivity, life tends to naught. What do we fall back to when we exhaust all we’ve got?
Awalame viewed food insecurity as a product of economic instability and inflation, limited access to credit and finance for small-scale farmers, policy instability and lack of supportive agricultural policies. “There is also the problem of market inefficiencies and lack of integration into global markets, which has worsened poverty and income inequality, reduced economic growth and productivity, led to decreased purchasing power and forced migration and urbanization, affecting rural agriculture.
He advised government to implement policies to stabilize the economy and control inflation, provide subsidies and financial support to small-scale farmers, improve market infrastructure and facilitate trade while also encouraging investment in agriculture through incentives and favourable policies.
Silas Calep, from Plateau State, cultivates hectares of land. He recounted how insecurity has undermined food production. “I narrowly escaped with my life last year because of attack in the local government leading to loss of many lives, foods, animals, properties and land.
“Due to the attack, many cannot come back to the village because of fear and some because they have lost everything.” If this continues, there will be no food for those of us residing within the state let alone exporting them to other parts of the country.
In his views, causes of food insecurity include lack of access to modern farming techniques and technology, land tenure issues and insecure property rights, limited access to markets and high transportation costs. “Other factors are pest infestation and diseases affecting crops and livestock, little or no access to fertilizers from government based facilities and high cost of same from private bodies, individuals and market”.
“To improve the situation, government must provide security and security apparatus to farmers with good road networks from the farm to the markets as well as training and education on improved farming practices.
“I strongly recommend the establishment of cooperative societies to enhance collective bargaining power, improved access to affordable credit and agricultural inputs, while extension services must be strengthened to provide timely information and support”.
Addressing food insecurity in Nigeria requires a multifaceted approach that considers the perspectives and challenges faced by agricultural experts, economists, farmers, and consumers. This approach should encompass improved agricultural practices, supportive economic policies, enhanced market access, and consumer education on nutrition and food choices.
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