The picture was posted on X by the RCCG Public Relations officer and has since then triggered reactions from internet users.
Some condemned the man of God for sitting on the monarch’s throne, while others criticised the king for allowing that to happen.
Reposting the photo on X on Sunday, an X user, animolenikun, wrote: “PASTOR E. A. ADEBOYE stop disgracing our heritage, do your things and respect our culture pls. Don’t tarnish the name you have built, because if Yoruba stands up against all this act, you’ll surely regret it, sir.
“My stand on this is that Baba Adeboye is doing this intentionally to ridicule the Yoruba Obaship. If you feel disgusted about it as Omoluabi this is time for you to speak up. This is an abomination.”
Niass204 also wrote on X, “I don’t have him to blame I blame our so-called Obas who decide to subject themselves to ridicule. Why would an Oba vacate his sit for him to sit on? That means HE the Olugbon doesn’t have respect for that seat.”
Commenting on the post, another tweep, HilawJamal1891 wrote: “I feel the blame should be placed under the feet of Olugbon…on what basis would he stand up off his throne for Baba Adeboye? He should be dethroned with immediate effect.”
Posting the picture on Facebook, Deyemi Saka wrote: “I see nothing but pride in Pastor Adeboye. If he is as humble as you all claim, he would have declined this offer/gesture.”
One Oyebolaji Collins Adewale also commented, “Adeboye is an ordinary man and not a god, but he has placed himself in the position of a god by sitting on the throne of a traditional king. It is not in doubt that God comes first but Adeboye is not god.”
Amidst the knocks against the pastor and the monarch, some other social media users hold a different opinion.
Tweeting on X, Adeshorpeh0912 wrote: “If God said, kings will bow before you, the thought of man and its opinion doesn’t concern God. It is going to happen. This is a living testimony.
No dey whine God.”
On Facebook, Kaayleb Ihasabemon also wrote: “The Bible says we are Kings with Christ who’s the King of kings, so we can sit on any throne. Baba is in order, don’t work yourselves out with trivialities.”
Anambra state governor, Chukwuma Soludo, on Sunday, December 24, led former governor and minister, Chris Ngige to the church thanksgiving of his late father, Pa Nwankwo after Saturday’s burial.
The church service was held at St. Theresa’s Catholic Church in Isuofia, Aguata local government area of the state.
Soludo expressed heartfelt gratitude to all who attended his late dad’s burial ceremony, extending special thanks to Vice President Kashim Shettima for traveling from Maiduguri.
He also hailed other high-profile guests who came to console with the his family during their difficult moment.
The governor said: “While my father lived, we gave him a befitting life. Now, we gave him a decent burial, free from unnecessary spending.”
He announced that donations received in his father’s name would be directed towards causes championed by his father while he was alive, reiterating the importance of celebrating loved ones while they are still alive.
During his homily, Rev. Fr. Prof. Anthony Chiegboka, the Vicar General of the Catholic Diocese of Ekwulobia, emphasized the importance of obtaining consent for the blessings received.
Chiegboka, reiterated that everyone must give God a chance in their lives, adding that all were called by God to a service of love.
He applauded Governor Soludo’s efforts in bringing lasting peace to his community, for which he was given the Chieftaincy title “Dike Udo Isuofia.”
Traditional rulers, the speaker of the Anambra state house of Assembly, Hon. Somtochukwu Udeze and former Senate President, Sen. Ken Nnamani among those in attendance.
A Lagos based farmers’ group, Afero Commercial Farmers, has petitioned the Lagos State government over the menace of land grabbers on their farms.
The petition signed by the Chairman, Prince Wale Oyekoya and the Secretary, Idowu Sulyman Dalegan and addressed to the Lagos State Commissioner for Justice and Attorney General, reads:
“Your honourable Sir, You will recall that the Lagos State Government, under the governorship of his Excellency, Babatunde Fashola, with your honourable self as the Solicitor General, assigned to us some parcels of farmland at Mutako Eluju, Mowo and Egan villages as replacements for our various farms that were taken off us by the state for the proposed Epe International Airport. We commenced our farming activities on the allocated parcels of land immediately we were issued letters of allocation while waiting for the promised CofO to be released to us.
“Unfortunately, we have not been able to achieve our expected progress in putting the land to full use because of harassment from different groups of people. First were the Omooniles and estate developers claiming titles to the land.
“Some of us have lost assets and farm produce to Omooniles’ thugs while some have been taken to police stations and courts. We are sad to say here that we have reported some of these challenges to various departments including ministeries of Agriculture, Justice, Lands, ALHA, Commerce and the office of the governor and no help has come to us from any.
“The most frightening and intimidating lately is the coming of the military into the theater; they are also claiming title to the land. In their characteristic manner, they come in number, talking tough and threatening fire and brimstone. We are now forced to keep away from our farms for fear of physical assault.
“We hereby appeal that you please use your good office to assist us and urgently to ward off these invaders so that we may be able to return to our farms without fears; expedite the Issuance of the promised CofO.”
Oyo State governor Seyi Makinde has told the chairmen of Local Governments and Local Council Development Authorities sacked during his first term of office to desist from trying to destabilise the state.
The governor maintained that the sacked chairmen had been using all underhand methods to distract his government and hurt the people of the state, noting, however, that they would not succeed.
According to the governor, the ex-LG chairmen had been shopping for all kinds of court processes, but he had kept his focus, adding that the government would now go after the embattled chairmen lawfully to ensure that they account for their deeds.
Governor Makinde stated this yesterday during an end-of-the-year Media Chat hosted by the Broadcasting Corporation of Oyo State (BCOS) and aired by 16 radio stations nationwide.
This was as the governor maintained that his government would turn the economic situation in the state around shortly, noting that though there had been a major impact in the country due to economic challenges, the state would be in a far better situation in a few months.
The governor, who signed the N438.4 Billion 2024 Budget of Economic Recovery into law on Friday, insisted that his administration had been making well-detailed and thought-out decisions to secure the future of the state while also taking care of the moment, which is the whole idea of sustainable development.
The governor, during the chat, said part of the well-thought-out decisions was the Sustainable Action for Economic Recovery (SAfER) initiative introduced by the state in the wake of the removal of fuel subsidies.
“In Oyo State, we introduced SAfER. Yes, the food element is there but we also have the transportation element, which allows us to help people move around. And we did not concentrate on Ibadan alone.
While responding to a question on a recent garnishee order on state government accounts obtained by the sacked chairmen, Governor Makinde said they were on a frolic of legal rascality.
He declared that his government would not bow to pressure to pay the state’s money into the wrong hands until all legal means were exhausted.
Insisting that his government was justified to sack the ex-LG chairmen because their election was premised on unconstitutionality, the governor said: “I was not wrongly advised and if I have to take the decision all over again, I will do the same thing. Before we came in, the previous administration had elections into the constitutionally recognised 33 local government areas as well as the LCDAs. So, that was the basis for our decision.
“I could have worked with anybody but, because they did something that was not in line with the constitution, we decided that they had to go.
The Management of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) on Friday began releasing letters to 267 newly promoted Junior Staff of the Agency as approved and confirmed by the Personnel Management Board on Promotion (Junior Staff Committee).
General Manager of LASTMA Olalekan Bakare-Oki said the promotion was in line with the ongoing strategic repositioning of the agency for a more effective service delivery to the general public particularly motorists.
He confirmed that while 26 Junior Officers were promoted from Grade Level 05 to 06, 241 others were elevated from Grade Level 05 to 06 including males and females.
The General Manager confirmed further that their general promotion was approved based on good credibility and efficiency in performance on duty.
“The agency will continue to reward diligent, committed, and hardworking personnel of the Agency to encourage them to do more,” he said.
Bakare-Oki maintained that those few bad ones embarrassing the good image of the agency would be continuously dealt with in accordance with the provisions of Civil Service Rules.
He urged members of the public particularly motorists to always adhere to every traffic Law and Regulation as contained in the Lagos State Traffic Sector Reform Law 2018.
A spinal cord injury patient, Oyewole Omololu has cried out for financial support to purchase a wheelchair and other life support gadgets.
He said: ”The incident happened on 8th February 2020 while I was on my way home from work around BUA mechanical workshop in Port Harcourt, Rivers State. I had joined two men on a motorcycle riding on a bridge with a narrow corner, but the careless motorcycle operator drove at top speed, collided with a truck, and threw us to the bridge underpass. The motorbike operator and one of the passengers died while I passed out and was rescued to a hospital by a bystander.
” However, I have so far spent about N4 million on treatment and medication without any permanent remedy for my spinal cord injury. The following are life support gadgets recommended for me: an automated wheelchair N3.4 million, an automated bed N2.6 million, and an automated mattress N2.2 million, totaling N8.4 million. It is almost a hopeless situation for me as I do not have money to buy these items, hence, my appeal to the public for financial support.”
In a groundbreaking move, Lagos Free Zone, the first privately owned zone in Nigeria, is poised to attract increased foreign direct investments from the United States.
This surge is attributed to the zone’s exceptional infrastructure and a plethora of incentives, including its integration with the Lekki Deep Sea Port.
Lekki Port at LFZ started operations in April 2023, and it is the deepest seaport in Nigeria, with a draft of 16.5m and the capacity to handle 1.2mn TEUs per annum.
The United States Consul General, William Stevens, leading a delegation from the United States Consulate General, expressed this optimism following a comprehensive tour of companies and facilities within the LFZ.
Stevens lauded the impressive and outstanding business relationship between Tolaram and US companies.
According to him, through the opportunities at the Lagos Free Zone, investors from the United States of America have deepened penetration in the Nigerian market by introducing world-class goods and services to Nigerians.
He noted that the influx of investments from US companies would not only fortify the economic ties between Nigeria and the USA but also underscored the unique incentives offered by the Lagos Free Zone for US companies looking to establish a robust presence in the Nigerian market.
“It is amazing to see the partnership between Tolaram and US companies and the opportunities therein. We are constantly looking at how we can attract more American companies to this market both in terms of investment and trade,” he said.
Dinesh Rathi, the Chief Executive Officer of Lagos Free Zone, echoed this sentiment, emphasising that the Zone remains the preferred investment destination, showcasing world-class infrastructure and enticing incentives for potential investors.
During the delegation’s tour of companies within the Zone, Rathi highlighted that LFZ provides the optimal environment for conducting business, having effectively addressed regulatory permit challenges and infrastructural hurdles.
He underscored the Zone’s role in redefining the Ease of Doing Business in Nigeria, offering incentives and infrastructure that foster a conducive economic climate, thereby promoting trade and investment.
“Our vision is to be the preferred industrial hub in West Africa with world-class infrastructure, and we are proud to serve global brands like BASF, Kellogg’s, Colgate, Arla, Dufil, and Lekki Port, among others, as our current tenants,” he added.
Established in 2012, the LFZ is a unique and award-winning port-based industrial zone (850 hectares) in Lagos, Nigeria, with over $2.5 billion committed FDI projects to date.
With over 26 million Nigerians expected to face acute level of hunger and malnutrition in 2024 alone, added to the 133 million populace already grappling with multidimensional poverty as a metaphor of their existence, there are clear and present dangers over the continuous safety and security of lives of the average citizen, reports IBRAHIM APEKHADE YUSUF.
In 1672 when the famous French playwright Molière, born Jean-Baptiste Poquelin, in a moment of exasperation wrote that “it is good food and not fine words that keeps me alive,” he was actually speaking for the majority of Nigerians, who are seriously lamenting the unprecedented hunger in the land currently and can’t seem to be placated by the government’s plausible explanations that they need to endure hunger even if for a little longer still!
With an estimated 223 million people, which is equivalent to 2.78 percent of the total world population, tackling food insecurity in Nigeria should be a serious cause for concern, according to Prof. Abel Ogunwale, a professor of Agricultural Extension and Rural Development at the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH), Ogbomosho, Oyo State.
Ogunwale, a World Bank consultant who spoke with our correspondent recently against the backdrop of the lingering food crisis in the country, lamented the parlous state of affairs, especially in the agriculture value chain in arguably what is today the largest economy by Gross Domestic Product (GDP) size in Africa.
For many discerning Nigerians like Ogunwale, it is rather unthinkable that Nigeria, with over 70 million hectares of arable land cannot feed itself adequately and has to rely on food imports from otherwise landlocked countries.
From available information, Nigeria spends hundreds of millions of dollars annually on food imports mainly for wheat, rice, fish, yams, livestock, dairy products, and other food crops the country has the capacity to produce even on a sustainable basis.
Despite the different intervention programmes by the federal government to shore up the nation’s food production, the country recorded a food trade deficit worth N4.92 trillion between 2018 and 2022.
Specifically, the country recorded a 121.7 percent increase in the value of imported foods within the five year period, rising to N1.9 trillion in 2022 from N857 billion in 2018.
According to data obtained from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the total agricultural imports into Nigeria from 2018 to 2022 amounted to N6.916 trillion while total agricultural exports from the country within the period was N1.997 trillion, resulting in an agricultural trade deficit of N4.919 trillion.
The data also showed that there has been a steady rise in agricultural imports into the country since 2018 which recorded N857 billion imports; and rose to N959 billion in 2019; N1.2 trillion in 2020; N2 trillion in 2021; before a moderate decline to N1.9 trillion in 2022.
However, within the same period, agricultural exports from the country amounted to N302 billion in 2018; N270 billion in 2019; N322 billion in 2020; N505 billion in 2021; and N598 billion in 2022, indicating a rise of 98 percent from 2018 to 2022.
Although agriculture contributes 22 percent of the nation’s total GDP and employs over 80 percent of the population, smallholder farmers who are responsible for 90 percent of food production in Nigeria lack the resources to improve their productivity.
FG’s interventions programmes only good on paper
The federal government has over the years spent millions of dollars on various agricultural programmes to spur local food production but the received wisdom out there is that the various interventions programmes implemented through different government agencies appear to have done little to address the food crisis situation in the country.
The CBN had in mid-January 2023 revealed that it had disbursed a cumulative amount of N1.08 trillion to farmers through the Anchor Borrowers Programme (ABP) in the last seven years, between 2015 and 2022.
ABP was launched in November 2015 in an effort to boost agricultural production, improve foreign exchange earnings and reverse Nigeria’s negative balance of trade on food.
The apex bank further noted that between January and February 2023, the CBN disbursed N12.65 billion to three agricultural projects under the programme.
This is beside other schemes such as the Commercial Agriculture Credit Scheme (CACS) and Accelerated Agricultural Development programme, amongst others, all designed to boost the nation’s food production.
These programmes, in addition to the ABP, have been valued at over N3.0 trillion over the years.
Unfortunately, analysts who have been following the implementation of the programmes have argued that there is still no significant impact as the country still has a huge supply gap in most of its staple foods, even as the population growth rate continues to soar.
Huge import bill worrisome
Certainly, to many discerning Nigerians, the enormous bill on food imports is something that calls for urgent concern.
While commenting on what he described as a very troubling phenomenon, the Chief Executive Officer, Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE), Dr. Muda Yusuf said, “Rising food import bill is extremely worrisome, especially for a country so richly blessed with arable land and numerous other natural resources.
“The basic problem is governance. Over the years, especially since the seventies, we have not instituted effective policies and programmes to promote investment in agriculture.
“There was practically no subsidy for agriculture for several years, whereas even in the advanced countries, billions of dollars are committed to subsidising agriculture.
“We need active government intervention with regards to agricultural inputs, technology adaptation, financing, processing, marketing, logistics, access to land and storage.
“There is a need to improve the efficiency in the entire agricultural value chain – production, processing, transportation, preservation, packaging, etc.
“It is impossible for the private sector to provide these support systems. These support systems existed in Nigeria before the incursion of the military into political governance in 1966.
“An improvement in the security situation would surely boost performance of the sector. This would impact job creation and food security in the country.”
Fear of food insecurity…
Nigeria is not totally immune to food insecurity. The fear in some quarters is that Nigeria, just like it happened in the distant past, may suffer some form of food insecurity if nothing is done to safeguard the states within the nation’s food basket from lingering insecurity, menace of flooding, poor infrastructure, etcetera.
This is in spite of the several interventions by successive governments, especially in the last 20 years or more.
While attempting a prognosis of the food crisis, Prof Ogunwale said the problem is multifaceted and as such is not a one size fits all approach.
“We have major problems hindering our food security from four perspectives. One is the issue of security threats vis-à-vis the situation in Benue, Zamfara, Jigawa, Borno, Adamawa axis and even the borderline between Nigeria and Cameroon and the other aspect is the Nigeria and Niger Republic issue,” he said.
The insecurity, he maintained, is as a result of the Boko Haram insurgency in parts of the north. “We have a lot of insurgency activities affecting those areas.”
“The second challenge, of course, is the issue of climate change. Climate change has resulted in flooding, and some devastation on the farming system,” he observed, adding that the issue of inconsistencies of government policies have seriously and negatively impacted farming activities generally.
“If the government can look into each of them, and take proactive measures against next year, we may avert serious food insecurity in Nigeria.”
Farms no longer safe
For many people, insecurity is at the heart of the matter of the food crisis in the country today. From Oyo, Ekiti, Ondo, Osun, Edo, Kogi, Delta, Benue, Kaduna, Taraba, Borno, Nasarawa, Zamfara, Sokoto, Anambra, Enugu, Imo, and other parts of the federation, the farmers have not become just endangered species but have since abandoned their farm steads, no thanks to the lingering problem of insecurity they confront on a daily basis.
The rapidity of the assaults of events on the farmlands is such that many people have even lost count of how and when it happens.
As at the time of filing in this report, news filtered in that some gunmen had sacked several communities in Taraba state, abducting a traditional ruler, a pregnant woman and her kids along with 22 others.
Amongst those kidnapped were two police officers – a sergeant attached to the monarch and an inspector who was on casual leave, residents said.
Taraba is among several states in northern and central Nigeria where bandit gangs operate, raiding villages, killing and abducting residents as well as burning and looting homes.
The criminals have been notorious for mass kidnappings of students from schools in recent years. Hundreds of thousands of people have also been displaced in rural areas in the northern and central parts of Nigeria, where bandit militias raid villages to loot and kidnap scores of residents to hold them for ransom in forest hideouts.
The heart-wrenching story of a journalist-turned-cassava-farmer, who simply wished to be identified as Adams, is an eye-opener of some sorts.
Adams, who ventured into the field of agriculture for about 24 months, said his unpleasant experience has made him give up hope about the redemption of the country.
“My actual vision was to start a 360 agric business from cultivating to processing of cassava, but Nigeria happened,” lamented the distraught Adams.
“I had over 25 hectares of cassava farm located at Owan East Local Government Area in Edo State,” he began, adding that he had undetermined the problem of insecurity on farms across the country until he literally suffered a near-death experience.
“My brother, I didn’t make any loss per se but I had to sell off all my produce and didn’t bother to reinvest again,” he recalled.
Pressed further, he said his experience with farming these past months was anything but pleasant.
“I had to shut down my farm because most of my neigbouring farmers were being kidnapped for ransom, and sometimes brutalised by suspected bandits. It got so bad that even the workforce became very difficult to find, as the majority of the Hausa men who would normally work on the farm were being hounded because they suspected that they were the ones behind the kidnapping. At the end they all left in droves because our people around here cannot easily distinguish between either a Hausa or a Fulani.”
While reiterating that the major problem of farming in the country today is that of insecurity, the budding entrepreneur said the government should stop paying lip service to the issue of insecurity.
“The lessons I learnt from your personal experience as a farmer, even if it was short-lived, showed me a lot of things. Certainly, if I must go into agric venture again, I will avoid some of the pitfalls,” he stressed.
Other factors affecting food production
Worried by the increasing cost of food and agricultural imports as a result of the government’s inability to stabilise the value of the naira against the US Greenback, the CBN had last October lifted foreign exchange restrictions for the importation of 43 items, including several food and agricultural products.
But despite this policy change, importers report continued challenges sourcing foreign exchange – as well as soft consumer demand because of the currency’s devaluation and high inflation.
A report by the NBS indicated that the downturn in food production in the country may not be attributable to the impact of insecurity alone.
The report indicated that prices of key farming inputs such as seeds, herbicides, pesticides, fertilizers, and agro machinery rose sharply within the period, making it increasingly hard for farmers to expand their production and forcing many to cut down on production.
Analysts attribute this situation to the operating environment characterised by low productivity, high post-harvest losses, low-value addition, fragmented markets, and inefficient value chain logistics.
“Nigeria, like other African countries, is battling food insecurity as a result of many factors such as instability of government in neighbouring countries like Niger where we get the bulk of our rice paddies, forex scarcity, farmer herder crisis, infrastructure challenge and poor access to finance for agribusiness, etc.,” Ogunwale noted matter-of-factly, stressing that many hitherto thriving farmers especially smallholders have abandoned their passion for agriculture to become commercial motorcyclists, amongst many other less life-threatening ventures.
Imminent hunger next year!
Although Nigerians are unhappy with the unprecedented level of hunger as the year ends, indications are that next year may be even worse off.
A damning report by Cadre Harmonisé, an initiative focused on food and nutrition analysis revealed that in 2024, Nigeria is expected to see about 26.5 million people grappling with high levels of food insecurity, just as approximately 9 million children are at risk of suffering from acute malnutrition or wasting.
Of these, an alarming 2.6 million children could face Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) and require critical nutrition treatment.
The Cadre Harmonisé conducts studies biannually (in March and October) across 26 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
The latest projection for 2024 indicates a sharp rise from the 18.6 million people currently vulnerable to food insecurity from October to December 2023.
Several factors are driving this trend, including ongoing conflicts, climate change impacts, escalating inflation, and rising costs of both food and essential non-food commodities (in part due to the devaluation of the naira and the discontinuation of the fuel subsidy). Persistent violence in the north-eastern states of Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe (BAY) hinders food availability and access.
Additionally, armed banditry and kidnappings in northwest and north-central states, including Katsina, Sokoto, Kaduna, Benue, and Niger, exacerbate the prevailing economic struggles.
Dr. Ernest Umakhihe, the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, underscored the significance of the Cadre Harmonisé during a presentation in Abuja, recently.
Represented by Mrs. Fausat Lawal, Director of Special Duties, Umekhihe highlighted that despite Government efforts, external challenges like the ongoing global economic effects of COVID-19 and the Russia-Ukraine war, which disrupts food systems, persist.
Of the 18.6 million people who experience food insecurity today, 3.3 million live in the northeastern states of the BAY region. This number might rise to 26.5 million nationwide by the height of the 2024 lean season (and to 4.4 million in the BAY states) if immediate action is not taken.
Dominique Koffy Kouacou, the FAO Representative ad interim in Nigeria and to ECOWAS, while calling on the government to expand CH coverage to the remaining 10 states said, FAO would continue to support the government and the people of Nigeria to overcome food insecurity and malnutrition.
He stated, “In 2024, alongside our partners, FAO’s focus will be on agrifood systems transformation with deliberate attention on resilience-building, nutrition-sensitive agriculture, livestock, fisheries, and providing extension services.”
The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported that floods in October 2023 in Adamawa impacted around 8,500 households, leading to mass displacements, particularly among women, children, and the elderly. Such extreme weather patterns, linked to the El Niño phenomenon, are further undermining food security “Food insecurity and malnutrition are among the main drivers of humanitarian need in the BAY states,” said Mr. Trond Jensen, the head of OCHA in Nigeria.
“People have been forced to adopt negative coping mechanisms such as survival sex and child labour to stay alive. Over the past year, dozens of farmers have lost their lives, and others have been abducted or injured while eking out a living outside the security perimeters of Borno’s garrison towns due to limited farming lands and few or no livelihood options.”
UNICEF’s Country Representative, Ms. Cristian Munduate, emphasised the urgent need for action.
She said, “Every child deserves proper nutrition and a life free from hunger. It’s not merely a responsibility but a moral duty for governments and the global community to ensure these rights are upheld.”
While highlighting the long-standing issue, David Stevenson, WFP’s Country Representative, said, “The hunger crisis in Nigeria, fueled by the ongoing conflict in the northeast, needs urgent addressing. Restoring peace in the northeast is critical for us to build pathways to production and achieve the northeast’s potential as the food basket of the country.”
The Cadre Harmonisé analysis covered 26 of Nigeria’s 36 states, including the FCT. It represents a collaborative effort led by the Nigerian government, in association with regional technical agencies,
Nigeria not alone
An estimated 50 million people in West, Central Africa are expected to go hungry next year due to a combination of conflict, climate change and high food prices, the United Nations has revealed.
The figure is 4% higher than in 2023. In coastal countries, the number of people facing acute hunger is expected to reach 6.2 million in 2024, up 16% from this year, according to a new regional food security analysis released by the U.N. World Food Programme (WFP) and other humanitarian agencies.
“Acute hunger remains at record levels in the region, yet funding needed to respond is not keeping pace,” said Margot Vandervelden, WFP’s acting regional director for Western Africa.
“Insufficient funding means the moderately hungry will be forced to skip meals and consume less nutritious food, putting them at risk of falling back into crisis or emergency phases, perpetuating the cycle of hunger and malnutrition,” she said.
More than two out of three households in West and Central Africa cannot afford healthy diets, the analysis found.
The cost of a daily nutritious diet in the central Sahel countries Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger is 110% higher than the daily minimum wage in the region, it said.
Sahel countries are facing an Islamist insurgency that has displaced some four million people from their homes and farms, according to U.N. figures. Democratic Republic of Congo also has multiple ongoing conflicts that have displaced nearly seven million.
The Sahel crisis has pushed people to seek refuge in neighbouring coastal countries such as Ivory Coast, Togo and Ghana, which is grappling with its worst economic crisis in a generation.
“Almost 80% of people who are currently in a difficult food situation are in areas affected by conflict,” said Ollo Sib, a senior research adviser for the WFP.
He warned that without intervention, the situation could deteriorate further in certain areas as over 2.6 million people were at risk of falling into famine.
Way forward
In the view of Rotimi Opeyemi Olawale, CEO of JR Farms Limited, a leading agribusiness venture operates within few countries in Africa and Europe including Nigeria, Rwanda, Zambia and also the in Netherlands, at the root of the crisis of food insecurity plaguing Nigeria is poor farm systems and general insecurity.
While offering recommendations to tackle the food crisis in Nigeria, Olawale said there is a need to transit from smallholder farms to large farms.
“We cannot have food security when our food security model as a country is dependent on smallholder farmers- smallholder farmers are generally vulnerable and victims of risks, they also operate on a small scale without use of technologies that can accelerate food production,” he said.
Pressed further, he said, “66% of food sales in the US come from commercial farms which constitute less than 10% of the farming population. We need commercial farms in Nigeria. Over the years the government has rolled out several interventions in the past for smallholder farmers that did not produce good results, this must change as such the government should develop frameworks and interventions for commercial farms. This would ensure more food can be produced in large quantities to meet growing demand for food.”
On how to tackle the intractable problem of insecurity, he said the government must be ready to live up to its constitutional mandate of providing safety and security for the citizenry.
“In the past eight years, insecurity has driven many farmers out of farms and displaced many, many factory owners in rural areas have also been affected by kidnapping, killings among others. As part of the major ways to tackle the food crisis, farms and rural areas must be made safe and secure for farmers, investors, and food factories to operate.”
Also worrisome is the fact that the dearth of road infrastructure within and around local communities remains a disincentive to farming.
“Rural and major highways connecting farms to market are still in bad condition, this makes it difficult for trucks conveying food items to reach the market thereby leading to food losses. For example, over 60% of food items get wasted in Nigeria and the poor road network is one of the reasons. Trucks carrying perishables are stuck on the road for many days due to bad roads. Good roads are important for transportation of food from farm to market (city) hence ensuring food security.”
Also with the federal government already setting machinery in motion with a raft of policy interventions, it is expected that things would change for the better in no distant time.
Peter Adebola, an economic analyst, shares Olawale’s sentiments completely.
According to him, until the government addresses the twin issues of insecurity as well as boost commercial agriculture, the populace will continue to face acute hunger.
Thankfully, one of the blessed assurances of better things to come is the proposal by the African Development Bank to invest $1billion into Nigeria’s agricultural sector in order to ensure massive job opportunities and food security.
The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari dropped this hint during a press briefing with State House Correspondents after the conclusion of the 137th National Economic Council meeting presided over by Vice-President Kashim Shettima at the Aso Rock Villa, Abuja, recently.
Edozie Udeze writes on one of Nigeria’s most promising artist Abiodun Badejo as he captures the whole essence of humanity in his second solo exhibition. The exhibition held at Gemini Art Gallery in Lagos.
In reminding the world about the importance of periods and locations in people’s existence, artist, Abiodun Badejo brought the beauty of connectivity into a single space. The value of appreciating the environment and its time in human development has been expressed in the artist’s newest exhibition.
Badejo’s capturing of the essence of humanity is being celebrated in his solo art exhibition titled Times and Places, which was shown from December 3-8, 2023 at Gemini Art Gallery, King George V Road, Onikan, Lagos. Organised by Legacy Empire Gallery, LLC, the exhibition, which is Badejo’s second solo efforts in seven years, has been described as a celebration of crucial moments what shape human existence. Badejo’s post-formal training experience include being a mentee to great artists like like Bashiru Bolaji Babatunde, Kolade Oshinowo and Abiodun Olaku. In 2016, Badejo showed his first solo exhibition at Nike Art Gallery, Lagos.
“The exhibition reminds us that we are all connected by the tapestry of human existence that transcends the boundaries of our personal moments and places,” curator of the exhibition, Matthew Oyedele stated. “It also encourages us to reflect on the significance of the moments we experience and the regions in which we live, and how they contribute to the particular tapestry of our lives.” The curator added that “we hope that this exhibition will inspire us to reflect on the Times and Places that define our existence.”
Badejo’s Times and Places also attracted the attention of one of Nigeria’s foremost art critics and historians, Prof Frank Ugiomoh. After highlighting the artist’s background and journey through stages of becoming who is today, Ugiomoh picked some of the works in depth analysis. “An appreciation of Badejo’s style and its originality comes to view in Take Home II,” Ugiomoh stated. “The composition is set in a roughly populated and busy market scene within a neighborhood,” Ugiomoh, a professor of the history of art and theory at University of Port Harcourt, Rivers State, captured Badejo’s thoughts on the painting. “Its panorama is engaged from a diagonal that vividly denes a foreground and a background that is unevenly segmented. The diagonal sweep, taken from the right of the picture plane, holds the theme of the painting as well as its interest. The orientation of the picture’s depth of eld takes its bearing from the same orientation to the right. The picture in keeping with its austere academic tradition terminates at the convergence of the vanishing point with its illusionism of space. The symbolic mainstay of the painting is sustained in its sparsely selected components of the composition. The proximate gure of a lady draped in green on a complementary color scale is adjacent to a red fruit container. A yellow-colored vehicle to the left of the composition sustains the tempo of the painting. The car among others has its lights on. The light reections are in sync with a late evening rain-drenched pavement. Some buildings also selectively project illuminations albeit insufciently. The staccato lighting becomes a function of deliberate design that bears social signication.”
Badejo’s paintings seemed to possess so much in aesthetics such that the beauty of the works energises wide appreciation. Ugiomoh’s thoughts on the works include comparative appreciation of different themes of the paintings. Excerpts from the art historian’s critique: “Evenfall contrasts with Take Home II suggestively. Its energetic rendition of a resplendent and colorful evening scene within a bourgeois neighborhood is remarkable for its brilliance. But they share a particular unity of color palate in their light glimmers except for the proximate modern buildings whose windows showcase the light-emitting diode (LED) technology of white light. The difference in available technological devices within different social spaces is strong in this collection. Such a departure is statemental regarding the denition of social identity and class; tacitly written large. There is a way such lush treatment of form in the painting is a pointer to an artist’s sensibility towards space and social construction of meaning. Qualitative aspects of lighting that awash this painting indicate enhanced individual well-being. Otherwise, what explains scenes such as Paddlers, Canoe City, Discussion, and impulsion, among others that are austere regarding their color composition? Summing up the nature of transactions in the compositions is equally revealing; the latter is congested and the former presents decluttered social spaces and mobile luxury items of vehicles.”
Abiodun Badejo studied painting at the Federal College of Education in Abeokuta, Ogun State. He later became a mentee of Bashiru Bolaji Babatunde, who opened the door for him to Kolade Oshinowo and Abiodun Olaku. In 2016, he presented his first solo exhibition at Nike Art Gallery, Lagos, where he impressed with his depth and knowledge of color, perspective and form. Badejo has participated across Nigeria in a number of art workshops and group exhibitions.
Liverpool’s meeting with Arsenal in April had a profound impact on last year’s title destiny. That same day was also potentially defining in this season’s race.
Should Jürgen Klopp win a second Premier League title in May, his side’s rapid improvement will be retraced to Arsenal’s trip to Anfield in April and the ‘reinvention’ of Trent Alexander-Arnold.
After a turbulent season culminating in a comprehensive defeat by Real Madrid in the Champions League and a hammering by Manchester City at the Etihad, Klopp and his coaching team redesigned Liverpool’s formation and the revamp began with Alexander-Arnold’s hybrid role, switching between right-back and central midfield.
The 2-2 draw with Arsenal was the first time Alexander-Arnold had licence to roam. Liverpool went 10 games unbeaten for the rest of the season and have lost just once in 17 games of the current campaign.
Alexander-Arnold remembers receiving his new instructions with enthusiasm, his days as an ‘orthodox’ full-back – if he ever was that – well and truly over.
“Initially, when the manager and Pep Lijnders [assistant coach] talked to me about it in the week leading up to the game, it was something that I was excited about,” recalls Alexander-Arnold.
“I had obviously seen other teams doing it and then to be asked to do it I thought it would challenge me. It is something that I have massively enjoyed and the team has adapted to it. A lot of focus goes on to me and it is kind of painted as the system is because of me and I am the biggest change just because I shift there.
“But, technically, everyone shifts around. The back three shifts around, you have the midfield, the two 8s then push up and the wingers kind of drop a little bit deeper so everyone moves. Everyone has adapted well.
“We have had a lot of changes but the system is working and you can see that even when I have not been in the team as well. When I was injured briefly in September we still continued to do it with Joe [Gomez] and Conor Bradley can do it really well as we saw in pre-season before he got his injury. It is more about a system rather than who plays in there.”
Alexander-Arnold acknowledges it is not a unique tactic as Pep Guardiola and Mikel Arteta used their full-backs in a similar way.
But the 25-year-old has sought to put his own spin on the position as he did as a marauding right-back who was more like a winger.
“I study the game anyway. I like to think that I watch a lot of football, I watch a lot of games and I see different systems and different players playing and how they interpret it and what they are asked to do,” he says.
“But the main thing for me was to try and execute what they wanted from me and how I could bring the best out of me and the team. That is my aim no matter where I am asked to play and how I am asked to play.
“It has changed and it has evolved over time. Some games you will see I am not in the middle as much, some games I am in there all the time.
“We have analysts and great coaches and an amazing manager giving us information as to where the space might be and where I can get on the ball.”
Alexander-Arnold cites examples of being man-marked and realising he has to improvise within games.
“Thinking back to the Villa game in September, when we won 3-0 and I got injured [later in the match] – in that game I was very deep and I came right out of the block and I was in the backline and getting the ball,” he says.
