Former Anambra State Governor and Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has strongly criticized the President Bola Tinubu-led administration over the escalating poverty and acute hunger in Nigeria. Obi made these remarks on World Food Day, highlighting the dire situation of food insecurity in the country.
Obi lamented that hunger has now become a pervasive issue in many Nigerian households. He noted that the soaring prices of food items have made basic necessities unaffordable for most people. “Severe hunger has now become an unfortunate member of many households in Nigeria—the once giant of Africa, a nation with the most arable land on the continent,” he said.
He emphasized that Nigeria’s struggle with food crisis and hunger is particularly disheartening given the country’s rich agricultural potential. “In the past, I used to lament that the majority of Nigerian households spent most of their income on food alone, sparing none for savings and other critical exigencies. Today, it is heartbreaking to note that most Nigerian households are no longer able to afford sustenance food with their income,” Obi stated.
Obi referenced a recent World Bank Food Security Update that compared Nigeria’s worsening food security crisis to that of war-torn countries like Yemen. He also mentioned that the Global Hunger Index now ranks Nigeria among the 20 most hungry nations in the world, with over 31.8 million Nigerians facing acute food shortages, including 15.6 million children.
The United Nations has predicted that if the government fails to address the issue, 82 million Nigerians, about 64% of the country’s population, may go hungry by 2030. Obi stressed the need for significant investments in agriculture to combat this crisis. He suggested that addressing insecurity and adopting modern mechanized farming techniques could help Nigeria achieve food security and prosperity.
Obi highlighted the potential of states like Niger, which is twice the size of the Netherlands but fails to feed itself or the nation, while the Netherlands exports over $100 billion worth of agricultural products annually. He urged the government to prioritize agricultural investments to combat hunger and achieve a productive, hunger-free nation.
