Many Nigerians risk dying of acute hunger if nothing is done to address the food crisis facing the nation, Peter Obi has said.
The presidential candidate of Labour Party (LP) stated this in a statement on Monday on the occasion of the World Food Day 2023.
“As the global community marks World Food Day today, we must remind ourselves of the present food crisis in the nation, and seek urgent steps to salvage the people from further hunger and starvation.
“Food crisis has remained a serious challenge facing many households in Nigeria, as the country is reported, by Global Hunger Index, to be facing a serious hunger level.
“With more than half of the population living in poverty, a report by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) has shown that over 90 million Nigerians face food insecurity, thus posing obstacles to a healthy population and human development.
“In the 2023 Global Hunger Index, Nigeria ranked 109th out of the 125 countries measured, showing that we currently battle high level of hunger.
“Reports have it that Nigeria’s food inflation rate in August 2023 was about 30 percent on a year-on-year basis. Consequently, a vast majority of Nigerians spend the entirety of their disposable income on foods, which is often hardly enough,” Obi stated.
The former Anambra governor said that the horrible spate of attacks on farmers in Nigeria by armed and terror groups have continued to hinder food production, food supplies and therefore, threatening to push the country deeper into a devastating hunger crisis.
He added that lack of adequate investment in agriculture also contributes greatly to food crisis in Nigeria.
Obi reiterated his earlier stance that the vast fertile lands in the North, if put into productive agricultural use, would produce enough food for domestic consumption and for exports, which can give the nation more revenue than currently generated from oil.
“Government, therefore, must invest heavily in agriculture, to ensure sufficient food production for Nigeria and the global world,” the LP candidate said.