Following a recent report by the United Nations (UN) on the impending hunger crisis in Northern Nigeria, Peter Obi has attributed the looming famine risk to leadership failure at the federal and state levels, as well as insecurity.
Obi, the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), described the situation as disheartening, noting that it is avoidable.
“Northern Nigeria is the nation’s food basket, and nothing short of incompetent and irresponsible leadership could have created this tragedy,” he said.
Obi recalled his recent post on X (formerly Twitter), in which he urged national leaders to reassess their priorities and address the dire circumstances facing the country.
He called on the Federal and State Governments to move beyond mere political discourse and make transparent, upfront investments to secure agricultural corridors, support smallholder farmers with accessible resources, and collaborate closely with organisations such as the World Food Programme (WFP) to bridge funding gaps before the crisis escalates and claims more lives, especially those of children.
Obi argued that a prosperous Nigeria, free from hunger, is achievable but requires leadership that prioritises the welfare of its citizens.
He expressed concern over the latest report by the UN’s World Food Programme, which indicates that Northern Nigeria is experiencing its most severe hunger crisis in nearly a decade.
“Over 17 million people in nine northern states face crisis-level hunger, with more than 35 million Nigerians nationwide at risk during this challenging season,” he noted.
The former Anambra State governor lamented that more than 10,000 residents of Borno State have entered “catastrophic” hunger conditions, describing the situation as not only immense human suffering but also a profound national failure.
Obi asserted that Nigeria should not rank among the world’s hungriest nations, given its abundant resources, particularly the vast stretches of fertile, uncultivated land in the North.
“This food crisis stems from two critical structural failures: insecurity and farmers’ inability to access their lands. Banditry and insurgency have turned agrarian communities into displacement zones. Until we secure our agricultural areas, we cannot secure our future,” he said.
He lamented that Nigeria’s global hunger ranking continues to worsen because of what he described as the government’s reliance on superficial measures that do little to boost agricultural productivity or transform rural infrastructure.
Obi emphasised that Nigeria needs to adopt policies that address the structural barriers to agricultural productivity and transform its land resources into agro-industrial output.
He further stated that Nigeria can overcome hunger and poverty if it urgently shifts its focus from consumption to production.
He added that a Nigeria devoid of hunger and mass poverty, where its arable land is transformed into productive acreage, remains attainable but requires leadership that places the lives and livelihoods of the Nigerian people above grandiose road dualisation projects.
