25 million Nigerians may suffer food crisis by August 2023 – FAO
By Yemi Olakitan
The Food and Agricultural Organisation of the United Nations has said no fewer than 25.3 million people in Nigeria will experience food insecurity between June and August 2023.
In a statement, the FAO warned that 4.4 million people in the states of Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe will suffer if nothing is done to stop the catastrophe.
In its October 2022 food and nutrition study, the UN food agency stated that approximately 17 million people in the nation were already experiencing a food crisis.
IDPs and returnees from 26 states, including the Federal Capital Territory, are among them.
According to the research, Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe states are home to 3 million of these people.
The government of Norway has renewed its financial partnership with the FAO in an effort to help the affected.
The money is intended to assist the most at-risk populations in the states of Borno, Adamawa, Yobe, and Taraba.
At least 45% of the people in the 43, 990 households (or 307, 930 people) who will get agricultural inputs, livestock assets, energy-saving stoves, and other products as a result of the three-year intervention will be women.
Knut Eiliv Lein, the Norwegian ambassador to Nigeria, stated that his nation is still dedicated to aiding in the attempts to rebuild northeast Nigeria’s livelihoods that have been damaged by the fighting.
The project that we are signing today is a part of Norway’s broader assistance to Nigeria in general, including humanitarian initiatives that are especially focused on helping individuals in need in the northeast region, according to Mr. Lein.
“We have collaborated with numerous organisations to address a range of concerns, including gender equality, food security, and health.”