World Food Day: Nigeria’s post-harvest losses hit N3.5trn annually — ActionAid

By Gabriel Ewepu

WITH unabating hunger across the country, ActionAid Nigeria, AAN, yesterday, asserted that Nigeria’s post-harvest losses have hit N3.5 trillion annually, threatening national food security.

This came on the heels of the commemoration of 2024 World Food Day on October 16, with the theme “Right to Food for a Better Life and a Better Future.”

Country Director of AAN, Andrew Mamedu, appealed to Nigerian businesses to invest at least 10 per cent in the agricultural sector in order to secure Nigerians’ future.

Mamedu acknowledged President Bola Tinubu’s declaration of a state of emergency on food security in July 2023, adding this reflected the urgency of the current food crisis.

He said: “As Nigeria marks World Food Day 2024, ActionAid Nigeria has called for decisive and urgent reforms in the country’s agricultural sector, warning that post-harvest losses of N3.5 trillion annually threaten national food security and economic stability. 

“The global theme for this year, ‘Right to Food for a Better Life and a Better Future’, takes on deeper relevance for Nigeria, where nearly 106 million people in rural areas are trapped in poverty and dependent on an agriculture sector plagued by inefficiencies and neglect.

“President Bola Tinubu’s state of emergency declaration on food security in July 2023 reflects the urgency of the crisis, but more needs to be done. 

“With 50 per  cent of Nigeria’s food production lost to post-harvest challenges, the lack of investments in critical infrastructure continues to cripple smallholder farmers especially women who are at the heart of food production.

“Nigeria’s agriculture budget allocations remain woefully inadequate. If each state and the Federal Capital Territory were to receive equal shares of the N3.5 trillion post-harvest losses, it would result in N94.5 billion per state, more than most states’ annual agricultural budgets combined. 

“Addressing Nigeria’s food crisis requires political will and sustainable public investments. In a nation where agriculture holds the key to economic recovery, neglecting the sector will perpetuate hunger, poverty, and inequality. 

“This World Food Day, ActionAid Nigeria calls on President Tinubu and all state governors to act swiftly to ensure that Nigeria’s agriculture sector becomes a beacon of food security, prosperity, and hope for future generations.

“Smallholder farmers, who form the backbone of food production, are left impoverished as half their harvests spoil before reaching the market.”

“ActionAid Nigeria emphasizes that deliberate public investments are critical in areas such as:   Post-Harvest Loss Reduction (processing and storage facilities, trainings, and market access)   irrigation and extension services (including solar-powered boreholes to support year-round farming)   women and youth in agriculture (including labour-saving technologies and access to credit)   climate-resilient agriculture (agroecology, research, and rural infrastructure improvements).

‘’The statistics reveal a grim reality for smallholder women farmers as: Only 26 per cent have access to processing facilities, a mere 18 per cent can access adequate storage facilities, 10 per cent have reliable transportation, only 21 per cent enjoy market access and just 39 per cent of these farmers receive post-harvest loss reduction training.

“Without urgent interventions, Nigeria cannot achieve the ‘right to food’ for its people. To meet the objectives of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement, AfCFTA, ActionAid Nigeria stresses that systemic barriers affecting women farmers must be dismantled to ensure inclusive economic growth and poverty reduction.

“ActionAid’s research highlights that strategic investments in agriculture could significantly boost states’ Internally Generated Revenues, IGR. With N15 billion spent annually on rural agriculture infrastructure, states could generate billions in additional IGR.

“These investments would not only reduce unemployment but also improve food production, enhance trade, and mitigate the effects of rural poverty and inequality.

‘’To align with the World Food Day theme and achieve lasting solutions, ActionAid Nigeria recommends the following:   Federal and state governments must prioritize the agricultural sector through massive investments in irrigation, credit facilities, processing hubs, and agroecology.  

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