Nigeria facing ‘rare food security crisis’, leaders must face reality – VP Shettima

Nigeria is facing a “rare food security crisis” and the sooner her leaders “come to terms with the reality, the better,” Vice President Kashim Shettima said on Friday.

Mr Shettima spoke on Friday in Abuja while inaugurating “the Presidential Food Systems Coordination Unit (PFSCU) as part of efforts by the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to tackle hunger and hardship in the land,” his spokesperson wrote in a statement.

PREMIUM TIMES reports that food prices have skyrocketed since President Bola Tinubu announced the removal of subsidies on petrol during his inauguration last year. The floating of the naira to allow market forces to determine the value of the Nigerian currency also worsened the situation.

The price of basic foods like rice and beans have more than doubled in price during that period with a 50-kg bag of rice increasing from about N20,000 to about N70,000.

Mr Shettima spoke two days after the Nigerian government announced that it would allow duty-free importation of some food items, like rice, beans and wheat, to increase availability and thus reduce prices.

Nigeria’s Vice President, Kashim Shettima (PHOTO CREDIT: His Twitter handle,https://twitter.com/officialSKSM/status/1759965215339237458/photo/3)

“Food insecurity endangers the very basis of our democratic experiment and this is why all hands have to be on deck. We are in a food security crisis but it also provides us the opportunity to re-engineer and reposition the nation on a firmer footing,” Mr Shettima told his audience comprising governors, cabinet ministers and representatives of development partners.

Read the full statement by the vice president’s spokesperson below.

*Presidency Adopts Multipronged Measures To Combat Food Insecurity*

* *VP Shettima inaugurates presidential food systems unit to harness resources, ideas*

The presidency has engaged the states, development partners and other critical stakeholders in the ongoing efforts to address the soaring prices of commodities and general food insecurity in the country.

To this effect, Vice President Kashim Shettima on Friday inaugurated the Presidential Food Systems Coordination Unit (PFSCU) as part of efforts by the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to tackle hunger and hardship in the land.

This followed a presentation by the Technical Assistant to the President on Agriculture, Office of the Vice President, Marion Moon.

Addressing members of the group comprising governors, cabinet ministers and representatives of development partners, Mr Shettima said, “The nation is facing a rare food security crisis and the sooner we come to terms with the reality, the better.

“Food insecurity endangers the very basis of our democratic experiment and this is why all hands have to be on deck. We are in a food security crisis but it also provides us the opportunity to re-engineer and reposition the nation on a firmer footing.”

Outlining the mandate of the PFSCU, the vice president said the unit was not created to usurp the functions of the Ministry of Agriculture, noting that the urgency and seriousness of the matter at hand require the ideas and resources of all stakeholders.

Mr Shettima made reference to the Green Imperative Programme, a government-catalysed, private sector-driven, agricultural industrialisation programme, as one initiative which the PFSCU must work assiduously to activate and operationalise.

He stated that with improved farming practices, improved seeds, use of fertilisers, Nigeria’s agricultural productivity could be turned around for the better.

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Earlier, state governors in the committee outlined plans to modernise farming practices, increase crop yields, and transform Nigeria into a self-sufficient food producer.

Governor Bassey Otu of Cross River State said Cross River State is looking to feed the country, adding that his government must modernise agriculture to feed the population.

“We are an agrarian state, and we have stepped up our game,” Governor Otu noted.

On his part, Borno State Governor Babagana Zulum emphasised the need for a coordinated approach, citing low productivity and population growth as a major challenge to the nation’s food security drive.

He called for investment in commercial agriculture, improved funding, and enhanced security for farmers.

Also, the Jigawa State Governor, Umar Namadi, highlighted the state’s potential to achieve food security.

“All that is needed is the political will to drive the process. Our lands are very fertile. In Jigawa, there are places where we are yielding ten tonnes per hectare of rice. There are so many places like that. As of today, our average in Jigawa State is about 12.56 per hectare. We are on the right course. What we need is sustained political will,” the governor explained.

For his part, Niger State Governor Mohammed Bago proposed his state as a pilot for the President’s food security initiative.

He revealed that Niger has invested over N100 billion naira in agricultural mechanisation, with 5,000 tractors and twenty pilot irrigation systems available.

Governor Bago called for support from the federal government, World Bank, and other development partners to ensure the success of these initiatives.

The Deputy Governor of Ebonyi State, Patricia Obila, who also spoke on the state’s unique topography and its potential to enhance its renowned Ebonyi Rice production, noted the need to introduce tractor mechanization to ensure year-round production and leverage youth participation by incentivizing agriculture with farm settlements equipped with necessary social amenities

On his part, Country Representative of the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO), Dominique Kouacou, who spoke on behalf of a group of donors, pledged their commitment to the success of all the efforts by the federal government aimed at addressing food insecurity in the country.

He said the enthusiasm exhibited by the president and vice president in addressing challenges in the agricultural sector is commendable and has reawakened the commitment of donors in the sector, assuring that they were fully on board with the government.

Also present at the meeting were Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari; Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Security, Aliyu Abdullahi; National President of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON), Maifata Mu’azu, and Executive Secretary of National Agricultural Development Fund (NADF), Muhammed Ibrahim.

Others include Managing Director/CEO of Flour Mills of Nigeria, Omoboyede Olusanya; MD of SaroAfrica, Rasheed Sarunmi; World Bank Programme Leader, Sustainable Development, Nigeria, Vinay Vutukuru, and the institution’s Senior Agriculture economist, Mr Manievel Emmanuel Sene, among others.

*Stanley Nkwocha*
*Senior Special Assistant to The President on Media & Communications*
*(Office of The Vice President)*
*12th July, 2024*