By Afolabi Samuel Odunayo
The prices of food in the market have risen drastically due to various crisis and challenges faced by farmers in Nigeria.
This has brought about serious shortage in food supply coupled with significant increase in inflation rate, says the United Nations.
Indeed, the United Nations on Saturday predicted that 82 million Nigerians, accounting for about 64 percent of the country’s population, may go hungry by 2030 unless concrete steps are taken by the Nigerian government to address accelerating food crisis.
That prediction which was further substantiated the National Bureau of Statistics’ report that Nigeria’s food inflation rate had hit a record high of 40.66 per cent in May 2024.
According to the report, this by implication, means that inflation had increased more than the 40.53 increase recorded in April.
Both the UN and the NBS reports further showed that Nigeria has, for years, been experiencing consistent rising inflation.
It would be recalled that the Nigerian Labour Congress(NLC) had demonstrated against hikes in the prices of food and other commodities in the country.
Expectedly, this has elicited mixed reactions. Stakeholders like a legal luminary and Senior Advocate of Nigeria(SAN), Olisa Agbakoba, and the Resident Humanitarian Coordinator of the Food and Agriculture Organisation, Taofiq Braimohalso, have risen to offer some perspectives and insights on the frightening situation as the UN report indicates.
“The government of Nigeria, in collaboration with others, conducts an annual food security survey. This year’s results are alarming: approximately 22 million Nigerians will face food insecurity in 2023, and around 80-82 million are at risk of severe food insecurity by 2030.
“Nigeria, like many countries, grapples with food insecurity, climate change, unreliable water patterns, pest infestations, and other threats to agricultural productivity. As an agrarian society, our farms’ success directly impacts food availability for our population. Leveraging technology is crucial to strengthening our agriculture sector and ensuring food security, ” Taofiq Braimohalso said while speaking at the launch of CropWatch in Abuja.
He also stressed that satellite-based crop monitoring provided real-time data on crop conditions, enabling farmers and policymakers to make informed decisions and optimize agricultural practices.
Also the President of Integrated Agricultural Services, South-West, Mr Adeyemi Adejare, did not dispute the UN’s report.
He aptly conceded that the Nigerian government has failed in its support for agriculture.
He said: “The only way to avert the UN’s prediction is to engage in aggressive farming, and get genuine support from the government. Nigeria is facing food insecurity already, so we can’t shy away from what the UN said. It is a pointer to the government’s failure to support agriculture.
“The food industries and our farming system must reach a sustainable level to avert the prediction, and that requires a holistic approach. We need to discard the old farming, storing, and processing systems. Government at all levels must be genuinely committed to promoting agriculture.
“The government must empower farmers and encourage mechanised farming for the youth. The government must also provide soft loans and subsidise farming inplements for genuine farmers.”
“The government has not been fair to farmers. The northern farmers are enjoying little benefits from the government, but the South-West governors are not helping the farmers at all. The governors have not been helpful; they have been paying lip service to the promotion of agriculture,” he added.
