Despite progress, food insecurity still grips Nigeria —ActionAid

ActionAid Nigeria has expressed concern over the country’s deepening food crisis, warning that Nigeria still ranks among the nations with the highest number of food-insecure people globally.

Andrew Mamedu, country director of ActionAid Nigeria, stated this on Wednesday during an event in Abuja to mark World Food Day 2025, themed “Hand in Hand for Better Food and a Better Future”.

Citing recent projections by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), Mamedu said 30.6 million people across 26 states and the FCT were at risk of acute food and nutrition insecurity between June and August 2025.

While this marks a slight improvement from 33.1 million recorded in 2024, he noted that Nigeria still faces one of the world’s most severe hunger challenges.

Mamedu linked the crisis to widespread insecurity, which he said has forced thousands of farmers off their lands during planting and harvest seasons.

He noted that this has worsened food shortages in key producing states such as Benue, Kaduna, Kwara, Taraba, Cross River, and Niger.

“In Benue, attacks on farming communities have destroyed farmlands and displaced thousands, crippling the production of staples like yam, maize, and rice,” he said. He also cited communal clashes in Plateau and banditry in Niger state, which have left vast farmlands uncultivated, threatening national grain supplies.

Referencing World Bank data, the ActionAid chief said more than 139 million Nigerians currently live below the poverty line, adding that three in four rural dwellers face extreme poverty and food deprivation.

To address the situation, Mamedu called for a National Poverty Summit to harmonise existing policies into a unified National Action Plan against hunger and poverty. He also urged governments at all levels to increase agricultural investment, particularly in climate-resilient farming, and ensure the full release of budgeted funds for agriculture.

“It is unacceptable that many states spend just 25 percent of their approved agriculture budgets, despite rising food and livelihood needs,” he said, calling on the National Assembly to strengthen oversight and ensure transparency in agricultural financing.

Mamedu said the 2025 World Food Day theme was a reminder that achieving a food-secure Nigeria requires collective effort from government, civil society, private actors, and citizens alike.