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Food SecurityNigeria

Nigeria: Severe food crisis looms

Isaac Mugabi
May 17, 2023

Nigeria's northern states of Adamawa, Yobe and Borno are expected to be hardest hit due to heightened Boko Haram attacks, banditry and kidnappings. Many locals have fled their villages and now live in IDP camps.

https://p.dw.com/p/4RUGI
A farmer works on a rice farm in Agatu village on the outskirts of Benue State in northcentral Nigeria
Mohammed Abdul said he 'had to start from the beginning' after losing all his farm inputs to violent attacks in Nigeria's northImage: Chinedu Asadu/AP Photo/picture alliance

Nigeria could face its worst food crisis if the country's government doesn't take urgent action, UN agencies have warned.

The states most likely to be affected are Adamawa, Yobe and Borno, where rampant kidnappings, banditry, and Boko Haram attacks have affected crop production.

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) have projected that about 25 million people in Nigeria will face acute food insecurity during the so-called lean season that runs between June and August.

Young girls and women living in camps for internally displaced persons (IDPs) are expected to bear the brunt of the crisis.

Children drink from a tap inside Bukasi Internally Displaced People's camp in Maiduguri, Nigeria
UNICEF says that around 700,000 children below the age of 5 face acute malnutritionImage: Gilbertson/Zumapress/picture alliance

Selling sex for food

Bintu Dauda, who lives in the Damboa IDP camp, told DW that many young women willingly provide sexual services in exchange for food.

"Most unwanted pregnancies among young girls in this camp were unavoidable," Dauda said.

"Many unmarried women and divorcees went out to give their bodies [sex] in exchange for food, and as a result, they became pregnant. Is it not their wish but because of the suffering."

Aisha Mohammad, who was displaced by the Boko Haram insurgency in northern Nigeria, wants more protection and support from authorities. Like many others, Mohammad came from liberated areas that Boko Haram once controlled and now lives at the Damboa camp.

"Our main concern is food," Mohammad told DW. "We don't have anything to eat. Many come out from the liberated area. Some sleep outside without protection. We often go to bed without eating anything." 

A Nigerian woman poses for a portrait in an undisclosed location in Nigeria
Many young women provide sexual services in exchange for foodImage: Paul Carsten/REUTERS

At risk of danger

Outside the camps, there is no guarantee of safety — but camp residents often have to venture outside in search of food and other basic needs to survive.

"Many of us go to dangerous places to fetch firewood," Musa Muhammad, another IDP, told DW. 

"You must go out and get something for your family — otherwise, you will starve. There is no other option, even though it is dangerous, and you could get killed."

Nigeria has the good weather and vegetation vital for crop production, according to Dr Yunusu Halidu Yabwa, national secretary of the All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN).

However, insecurity in the north has hampered farmers' efforts to grow crops, he said.

"Nigeria used to be known as a food basket of the world," Yabwa added. "Parts of northern Nigeria were once arable but now are no-go areas because of kidnappers, banditry, and Boko Haram insurgents."

"All the land became useless because you couldn't utilize it. Once you go there, you will be harmed by the criminals," said Yabwa.

Nigeria's malnourished children

Sudan and Ukraine dominate resources

Around 4.4 million people will face food insecurity in 2023 in Nigeria, Africa's most populous country, according to the UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

That means food assistance needs will peak in Nigeria during the lean season, according to the OCHA.

Matthias Schmale, the OCHA's coordinator in Nigeria, said the situation in northeastern Nigeria is alarming.

"I'm very worried in, particular about children. If we don't get increased funding and can do more, 700,000 children will be at risk of severe acute malnutrition," Schamale said. "That is staggering."

Schmale pointed out that the world is focused on other conflicts, particularly in Ukraine and Sudan.

"The war in Ukraine has diverted resources, and we have other operational theaters, like Sudan, competing for attention with northeastern Nigeria," Schmale added.

A woman stands by sacks of wheat
The UN has rung the alarm over an increase in the number of acutely hungry worldwideImage: Ben Curtis/AP Photo/picture alliance

The OCHA announced that it would convene with local communities to take urgent action on the food crisis.

Northeastern Nigeria meanwhile continues to struggle with a decades-long insurgency, economic turmoil and the devastating effects of climate change. 

Years of conflict and insecurity prevent many people in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states from growing the food they need — or even earning the  income they need to procure food, according to OCHA.

Al-Amin Muhammad in northern Nigeria contributed to this report

Edited by: Keith Walker

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