Cadre Harmonisé, an initiative conducted biannually (in March and October) across 26 states and the FCT focused on food and nutrition analysis, says 33.1 million Nigerians will face acute food insecurity in 2025.
The report was led by the federal government, in association with regional technical agencies, UN bodies, and NGOs and serves as a comprehensive tool to evaluate present and future food and nutrition scenarios.
A statement signed by Chi Lael, head of communications and media, United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), Nigeria Country Office, said the number of people facing emergency levels of need is projected to almost double next year.
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“Approximately 5.4 million children and nearly 800,000 pregnant and breastfeeding women are at risk of acute malnutrition or wasting from six of the most affected states of Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe in the northeast, and Sokoto, Katsina and Zamfara in the northwest. Of these, an alarming 1.8 million children could face Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) and require critical nutrition treatment.”
The report noted that between October and December 2024, 25.1 million people will likely experience acute food insecurity even at the peak of the harvest season. Of this, 3.8 million live in the north-eastern states. This number is projected to rise to 5 million.
The report warned policy makers over the deterioration of food security in Nigeria, with 33.1 million people expected to face high levels of acute food insecurity during the coming lean season (June-August).
This represents an alarming rise of 7 million people from the same period last year, driven by economic hardship, coupled with record high inflation, the effects of climate change and persistent violence in the north-eastern states of the country.
“Nigeria grapples with economic hardship, coupled with record high inflation (which reached 40.9 percent for food, and 34.2 percent for all items in June 2024). It added, stating this is a record increase in food prices amid record high transportation costs.
“According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the price of beans in October 2024 was 282 percent above the same period in 2023. Similarly, the price of local rice rise by 153 percent compared to October last year. These economic shocks resulted the continuous devaluation of the local currency (Naira) against the United States Dollar (USD), external economic factors, and last year’s policy changes on discontinuation of the fuel subsidy.”
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Dominique Koffy Kouacou, Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) representative ad interim in Nigeria and to ECOWAS, expressed FAO’s continued commitment to supporting Nigeria. “Working closely with our partners, FAO is dedicated to implementing durable solutions that tackle the underlying causes of food insecurity and malnutrition. By enhancing agri-food systems, we strive to meet urgent needs while promoting long-term, sustainable progress for communities,” Koffy said.
David Stevenson, WFP’s country representative said, “The hunger crisis in Nigeria is fueled by the ongoing conflict in the northeast and needs to be urgently addressed. Restoring peace in the northeast is critical for us to build pathways to production and achieve the northeast’s potential as the food basket of the country.”
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