On October 14, 2022, a German-based Welthungerhilfe and Dublin-based Concern Worldwide published the report which exposed an open secret about hunger levels in Nigeria.
The index has five levels of hunger 鈥 low, moderate, serious, alarming, and extremely alarming. Nigeria ranked 103 out of 121 countries with a score of 27.3 which signifies 鈥渟erious鈥 hunger levels. Last year, Nigeria and in 2020.
While 鈥渟erious鈥 may seem manageable because it鈥檚 an average score, we don鈥檛 need to get to an 鈥渆xtremely alarming鈥 level before we realise there鈥檚 fire on the mountain and we should be running. Or doing something about it.
What鈥檚 responsible for Nigeria鈥檚 hunger crisis?
Why exactly is there a major hunger crisis in Nigeria? There鈥檚 a long list:
Floods
With the current flood situation happening in key like Benue and Kogi, farmlands have been totally destroyed. A disruption in food production inevitably leads to scarcity and a severe hunger crisis. Experts have pegged and they don鈥檛 see it slowing down anytime soon with the damage caused by the floods.
Image Source: AP
Insecurity
The activities of armed bandits, terrorists, and militants have affected food production and , and an increased reliance on imports. For safety reasons, many farmers have abandoned their farmlands, fled their communities, relocated to urban areas, or taken shelter in Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps. And when the farmers are not around to farm, how would there be food?
COVID-19
Even though the severity of the pandemic has reduced greatly, it鈥檚 needless to say that it than expected. Due to the lack of revenue coming into the country as a result of the lockdown, Nigeria had to .听
The country also slipped into its second recession in four years and food we haven鈥檛 recovered from.听
The Russian-Ukraine War
Nigeria on imports of major staple foods such as rice and wheat, but trade has been disrupted by the Russian-Ukraine war that started in February. With the two countries being major exporters of agricultural produce for Nigeria, to unimaginable highs. It also doesn鈥檛 help that enough local food isn鈥檛 produced.听
How can we escape the crisis?
Now that you know the causes, what can be our solution to the hunger crisis? Ending terrorism, responding well to the flooding crisis, and praying for the end of the Russian-Ukraine war are obvious answers, but those won鈥檛 happen immediately. So instead, here are some solutions that seem much simpler:
Cultivate the habit of buying food materials in bulk
When you buy food items in bulk, you’re almost always saving money. Plus, the more food you have, the lesser the need to buy more. It鈥檚 that simple.
Please, let鈥檚 slow down on imported foods
Food grown in Nigeria will always be cheaper than food imported elsewhere. Let that Basmati rice rest for once.
Avoid food wastage
It only goes without saying that we should exercise discipline in eating the foods we consume. For instance, don鈥檛 finish one bag of rice in a day. You never know if it鈥檚 going to be the same price as when you bought it.
