JUST IN: Nigeria’s Food Crisis Hits Breaking Point

Nigeria is facing its worst hunger crisis in six decades.

According to the Global Performance Index (GPI) Bulletin for June 2025, the country has hit a dangerously low point in food access and nutrition.

March Oyinki, Group Director of Advocates for Positive Development (APD), blamed government policies, rising insecurity, and economic hardship for worsening hunger across the nation.

Oyinki highlighted the devastating effects of President Bola Tinubu’s austerity measures, which began in May 2023.

Nigeria, with over 223 million people, is the most populous black nation on Earth. Yet, millions now suffer from hunger-related illnesses, especially children and the elderly.

Basic health care remains unaffordable for many, fueling a high death toll daily.

Food access has dropped sharply due to insecurity, climate change, poor infrastructure, and soaring inflation.

Hunger and malnutrition have worsened poverty nationwide. Even middle-class families now struggle to feed themselves.

The 2024 Global Hunger Index ranks Nigeria 110th out of 127 countries, with a “serious” score of 28.8. The report shows that 18% of Nigerians are undernourished, and 10.7% of children die before age five.

Rising food prices have turned basic meals into a luxury. Many families now survive on just one or two meals daily.

According to APD, a family of five now needs between ₦600,000 and ₦760,000 monthly just to eat basic meals like bread, tea, and swallow.

Meanwhile, those earning the national minimum wage can barely afford one decent meal per day.

Insurgency in the North and insecurity in the Middle Belt Nigeria’s main food-producing region have slashed agricultural output.

Food shortages and high prices are driving even more families into extreme hunger.

The federal government’s ban on importing essential food items like rice, beans, and wheat has only made things worse.

Critics say the timing couldn’t be more harmful, as local food production continues to plummet.

Although the government has declared a food emergency and launched long-term projects like river basin expansions and mechanized farming plans, experts say this does nothing to address the urgent crisis at hand.

Oyinki and others are urging the Tinubu administration to lift the import ban on key staples immediately.

Short-term access to affordable food is essential while long-term farming solutions take shape.

The government has also started major infrastructure projects like the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Road and the Badagry Sea Port. A Lagos-Sokoto route is reportedly in the pipeline.

These are expected to boost trade in the long run, but critics say they offer little relief for starving families today.

Without immediate food intervention, millions more Nigerians could face severe hunger, malnutrition, and death in the months ahead.

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