Food crisis imminent in 26 states, FCT – Report

Over 24 million Nigerians in 26 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), including 18,000 internally displaced persons (IDP) face acute food shortages between June and August this year, according to a Cadre Harmonise (CH) report.

The CH report which was launched in Abuja on Thursday, identified naira re-design as one of the key drivers of the food crisis which is expected to get worse in the coming months.

It stated that the monetary policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) geared towards the redesign of the currency notes and withdrawal of the old notes from circulation created a serious bottleneck to households’ ability to access cash as well as food commodities.

“Insecurity, especially insurgency in the north-east states, particularly Borno, Adamawa and Yobe, still persists; armed banditry and kidnapping for ransom in some north-west states like Katsina, Sokoto and Kaduna, as well as the north-central states of Benue and Niger which have also lingered.

“Prolonged scarcity of premium motor spirit (PMS), also known as petrol, and the associated hike in pump price across the states led to an astronomical rise in transport fares and cost of food products in Nigerian markets.

“Consistent rising price of food commodities and agricultural inputs across Nigerian markets is one of the drivers of food insecurity. The general consumer price index shows an increase from 15.7 percent in February 2022 to 21.9 percent in February 2023 (that is 39.49 percent point increase) year-on-year,” the report stated.

The March 2023 cycle of the Cadre Harmonise (CH) analysis covered 26 states of Nigeria, including Abia, Adamawa, Bauchi, Benue, Borno, Cross-River, Edo, Enugu, Gombe, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Lagos, Nasarawa, Niger, Ogun Plateau, Rivers, Sokoto, Taraba, Yobe, and Zamfara, and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The CH is also a tool adopted by partners in the Food Security Sector (FSS), usually developed on request by the government as an early warning tool to prevent and manage food and nutrition crises.

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In Nigeria, the process is led by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development through the National Programme for Food Security (NPFS), working closely with other government ministries, departments and agencies, with technical and financial support from global, regional, and national partners.

According to the report, food consumption level has remained inadequate and below the desired threshold across most states, especially Adamawa, Borno and Gombe which fall under the crisis phase.

It stated that households have been disposed of their livelihood assets to meet their food and non-food needs.

This is most common in the insurgency-affected states of Adamawa, Borno and Yobe, where the number of affected local governments stood at four, 13, and 10 respectively.

The reports also highlighted the loss of employment and reduction in household income due to the long-term effect of COVID-19 pandemic and displacement arising from conflict and armed banditry as drivers of the crisis.

“About 17.7 million people, including 14,000 IDPs in 26 states and the FCT are in crisis and may get worse through May 2023.