The Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) has attributed food insecurity and hunger among an estimated 26.5 million Nigerians in 2024 to inflation, insecurity, and climate change.
At a press briefing on the Policy Innovation Centre (PIC) on Friday, NESG CEO, Dr. Tayo Aduloju, stated, “Conflict, climate change, inflation, and increasing food prices are among the pathways contributing to the rise in high food insecurity and malnutrition rates.”
According to Aduloju, rising food prices, which reached 40.66% in May 2024, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), are a significant contributor to multidimensional poverty among Nigerians.
“In 2024, around 26.5 million Nigerians are projected to be food insecure, with about 4.8 million at risk in the conflict-affected northeast.”
The NESG warning comes on the heels of a similar alert by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), an arm of the United Nations, which predicted that by 2030, about 80 to 82 million Nigerians may slip into severe hunger in the country amid food insecurity.
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The NBS report showed that staple food prices surged above 130% in May, with rice, garri, beans, and other foods rising by at least 130%. “The misery index among Nigerians worsened as staple food prices continued to rise,” the report stated.
Dr. Aduloju emphasized the need for urgent action to address the crisis, stating, “We must act now to address the root causes of food insecurity and hunger in Nigeria. We cannot afford to wait until it’s too late.”
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