A report by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) that that 19.4 million Nigerians across 21 states and the Federal Capital Territory facing hunger has set the federal government on edge.
Indication to the government’s concern about the situation was given yesterday by the minister of agriculture and rural development, Mr. Mohammed Abubakar at a media briefing in Abuja to flag off the World Food Day celebration.
The FAO report also revealed that two million children across the country suffer from severe acute malnutrition.
Speaking at the event, Mohammed stressed the need to be concerned about the disturbing statistics but urged Nigerians not to panic.
He said the government was doing its utmost to mitigate the food challenge.
He attributed the food crisis to COVID-19 lockdowns, the Russia-Ukraine war, which, according to him, has slowed the movement of raw materials, especially fertiliser, and flooding occasioned by climate change.
“Some of you might think COVID-19 is gone but the havoc it wreaked in the last few years is still here. Up till today, a lot of supply chain routes have not opened up.
“I just came back from the United States. I have been to different supermarkets; you will see empty shelves because up till now, they have not been able to get all the raw materials they need.
“I flew over Panama in South America when I went to Brazil about five weeks ago. I saw tons and tons of ships at the Panama Canal, waiting to pass through to deliver supplies. So, the havoc caused by COVID-19 is still there,” he said.
The minister also acknowledged the fact that Nigeria has also had a fair share in food availability crisis.
“We know that we have some issues of insecurity. Production has dropped. But it is not significant enough that we should have a shortage of food. We don’t have shortage of food in Nigeria at this point. I want to make sure there is no shortage. But prices have risen.”
In his remarks, FAO country representative, Mr. Fred Kafeero, while speaking on the theme of the celebration, ‘Leave no one behind: Better production, better nutrition, a better environment and a better life’, stressed the need to do more to reverse the trend of hunger and malnutrition.
