The United Nations (UN) has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu-led federal government to make dedicated budgetary allocations to curb food insecurity.
The UN Director of the World Food Programme (WFP) Africa Union Global Office, Dr Hameed Nuru, made the call in Ilọrin, Kwara State capital, on Wednesday.
He spoke as the Guest Speaker at the maiden annual lecture of the University of Ilorin’s Faculty of Veterinary Medicine themed: “Navigating nexus of food security, safety and diseases: a holistic sustainable future and economic economic prosperity”.
The programme was in honour of a former deputy vice-chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University and the first professor from Ilorin Emirate, Professor Saka Nuru.
According to him, statistics at the UN show Nigerians spend over 65 per cent of their salary on food consumption as against a 5-6 per cent acceptable rate, adding that “This is unacceptable”.
He said the country’s future is bleak without food security, adding, “It’s not the oil, gold, diamond and other natural resources that can guarantee Nigeria’s future but food security which is now directly linked to national security.
“In Nigeria, you see the budget for health, education and infrastructure, but not food security. It is only spread between the budgets of other ministries. We need a dedicated budget for food security because the time has come for it. Nigeria is a hotspot for food insecurity among other nations.
“We have about 36 active conflicts in Africa with some more than 30 years old. This is the single most important challenge to food insecurity in Nigeria and other affected countries”, he said.
