Insecurity has become one of Nigeria’s most significant obstacles to achieving food security, with its far-reaching effects on agricultural production, distribution, and the overall food supply chain.
The ongoing conflicts, particularly in the northern and central regions, have left farmers displaced, lands abandoned, and rural economies devastated, all while food prices soar, and hunger continues to rise.
Disrupted Farming Cycles
For many Nigerians, agriculture is the backbone of their livelihood, providing sustenance for families and income for millions. However, persistent insecurity, driven by insurgencies, banditry, and herder-farmer conflicts, has left large swathes of farmland unsafe for cultivation. In key agricultural states like Borno, Zamfara, and Benue, farmers have fled their homes, unable to tend to their crops or rear their livestock.
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According to a recent report by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), insecurity has severely disrupted the planting and harvesting cycles, leading to reduced yields and shortages of staple crops such as maize, rice, and millet. As attacks on rural communities persist, many farmers are hesitant to return to their lands, leaving vast areas of fertile land uncultivated.
The results have been devastating
Nigeria ranks second globally in terms of the number of people facing acute food insecurity, according to the 2024 Global Report on Food Crises.
The report, which examined 59 countries, places Congo DR as the country having the highest number of people facing food insecurity in the world at 25.8 million for a nation with less than 100 million population.
Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation with over 220 million people, has more than 24 million people who are food insecure and plunged into hunger.
Rising Food Prices and Scarcity
The disruption in agricultural production has triggered an increase in food prices, making basic foodstuffs unaffordable for many Nigerians.
Data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) show that food inflation has been consistently on the rise, driven by both the scarcity of locally produced food and the rising cost of transportation due to insecurity on major highways.
In July 2024, the food inflation rate stood at 39.53 percent year-on-year, a significant increase from 26.98% in July 2023.
The escalating food crisis has fanned overall inflation which, despite slowing for the first time in almost two years, remains higher than the CBN’s preferred target in July.
“A food crisis is a situation where acute food insecurity requires urgent action to protect and save lives and livelihoods at local or national levels and exceeds the local resources and capacities to respond,” the GRFC said.
Insecurity, however, remains a primary driver of this crisis, disrupting agricultural production, hindering food distribution, and limiting access to essential resources.
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Roads, particularly those leading from the north to major urban centers, have become dangerous due to the threat of kidnappings, armed robbery, and attacks on transport convoys.
As a result, many transporters either refuse to travel through these routes or increase their prices to account for the risks involved. This further drives up the cost of food by the time it reaches markets in cities like Lagos and Abuja.
According to a recent report by SBM Intel titled, ‘An August Nightmare: Assessing The Early Days of The #EndBadGovernanceProtestInNigeria,’ the North has suffered more kidnappings between July 2023 and June 2024, with more than 10 times as many kidnap victims as the South.
Available data revealed that the region has the most insecure states despite being the largest supplier of the country’s agricultural needs.
As insecurity pushes the farmers off their farms, multiple taxations by bandit warlords operating in the rural areas are shrinking their proceeds.
“In early 2024, SBM found that no less than N139 million was paid as farm levies (including planting and harvesting) to bandits who demanded at least N224 million across the North between 2020 and 2023,” the report stated.
“In the same period leading up to June 2024, at least 1,356 farmers were killed across the country, with most of the killings occurring in the North,” it added.
This has led to a decline in agricultural production, resulting in shortages of staple crops such as rice, maize, and cassava.
The Cost of a Healthy Diet (CoHD) in Nigeria has increased by 47.44 percent in the first seven months of 2024, higher than general inflation and food inflation, a new report by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition said.
The national average cost of a healthy diet rose to N1,265 per adult per day in July 2024 from N858 in January 2024.
Government Efforts and Challenges
The government has rolled out measures, including distribution of grains to the most vulnerable groups, to douse the pains.
The Nigerian government has also recently suspended duties, tariffs, and taxes for the importation of food maize, husked brown rice, wheat, and cowpeas for 150 days.
However, the palliative measures are yet to cool the prices of staples already up in the market as Nigerians continue to spend 65 percent of their income on food, according to the World Food Programme (WFP).
Abiodun Olorudero, managing partner at Prasino Farms, expressed skepticism about the effectiveness of the zero import duty policy, saying that it might not yield the desired result due to “stringent crazy conditions.”
“They said you can only bring in paddy rice, which means that if I’m importing paddy rice, I must first take it to the North where there are processing machines before bringing it to the South to distribute,” the agricultural expert said in a conversation with BusinessDay.
“The cost of transportation is still an issue”
He added that there is a higher possibility that the processed rice will be exported due to a weaker currency at home as many farmers now prefer to sell outside the country to get more money. Olorudero also said that the foreign exchange volatility is also an issue, saying that importers will still bring in products at the rate of N1600/$.
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The Way Forward
Addressing Nigeria’s food security crisis requires a multi-faceted approach that combines enhanced security measures with sustainable agricultural policies. The protection of rural communities and farming areas should be prioritised, alongside efforts to support displaced farmers and rebuild disrupted agricultural infrastructure, experts say.
Moreover, local governments and private stakeholders must work collaboratively to strengthen agricultural value chains and invest in alternative methods of food production, such as urban farming and agro-processing, to mitigate the impact of insecurity, they add.
Without urgent intervention, insecurity will continue to prevent Nigerians from accessing affordable and sufficient foods, perpetuating hunger and exacerbating poverty across the country. As the situation stands, the country’s path to achieving food security is increasingly threatened by the shadow of violence.
