Hardship: Nigeria Ranks 109 of 125 Hungriest Nations – Obi

National Leader of Labour Party (LP), Mr Peter Obi, has called on the Federal Government to stem the tide of growing hunger in the country. Obi on his X platform, yesterday, expressed worry that Nigeria is among the 20 hungriest nations in the world, as the country ranks 109 out of 125 countries measured on the Global Hunger Index. He noted that by the end of 2023, about 26.5 million Nigerians were reported to be at risk of hunger, adding that by the end of 2023, about 26.5 million Nigerians were reported to be at risk of hunger in 2024.

He lamented that many Nigerians now spend all their income on food alone. “I was alarmed when, on January 2023, the Cadre Harmonisé, a UNICEF publication, indicated that nearly 25 million Nigerians were at risk of facing hunger between June and August 2023 if urgent actions were not taken,” he said. The former Labour Party presidential candidate lamented that the hunger and security situation in the country was becoming complex, and called on the Federal Government to ensure the security of farmers in the country and give them adequate support to increase food production.

“I was very concerned and worried like every other Nigerian and I then called on the government of the day to take urgent steps and stem the tide of impending hunger in the nation,” he noted. The former presidential candidate described as saddening, the report by the same Cadre Harmonisé that more Nigerians, to the tune of 31.5 million, are at risk of acute hunger and serious food insecurity between June and August 2024.

“The situation has now become more complex with the high cost of living and high inflation rate which pervades our economy,” Obi said. The former Anambra State governor maintained that the surest way to fight hunger in Nigeria is by moving the nation from consumption to production, “which entails aggressive investment in agriculture by fully exploring and cultivating the vast arable lands mostly in the northern parts of the country.

“Now that we have been given notice of the impending danger, the additional number of Nigerians that will face hunger by June this year, I strongly urge that we work hard and put in place measures that will help us to avert it, and the government must secure the farmers and give them adequate support for increased food production.”

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