JUST IN: FG Raises Alarm as 161 Million Nigerians Face Food Insecurity — “Nation on the Brink”

In a grim warning that underscores the deepening crisis across the country, the Federal Government has sounded a nationwide alarm, revealing that a staggering 161 million Nigerians are currently facing food insecurity.

The figure, which represents over 70% of the country’s estimated population, has sent shockwaves through the nation as experts warn that Nigeria is teetering on the edge of a humanitarian catastrophe.

The disclosure was made during an emergency stakeholders’ meeting convened to address the spiraling cost of living, inflation, insecurity in farming regions, and widespread hunger sweeping across urban and rural communities alike. Officials pointed to a “perfect storm” of factors: rampant banditry in food-producing states, persistent inflation, displacement of farming communities, climate change, and the depreciation of the naira, all converging to create a national food crisis that is spiraling out of control.

Even more alarming, the government admitted that food insecurity is no longer confined to the poorest zones. From the northern villages displaced by terrorists, to southern urban centers plagued by skyrocketing prices of staple goods like rice, garri, and beans, millions of Nigerians are now forced to skip meals or rely on meager rations. The ripple effect has already begun to spark unrest. In markets across Lagos, Enugu, and Kano, protests have broken out over unaffordable food prices, with many traders shutting down in frustration.

“This is a national emergency,” a senior government official declared. “If immediate, coordinated action is not taken, we may be facing famine conditions in some regions before the year ends.”

The government has pledged to roll out emergency food relief measures, scale up food production efforts, and engage state governments to ensure coordinated responses. But citizens are already skeptical, pointing to previous promises that yielded little visible impact. On social media, outrage and despair are dominating the conversation. “How did we get here? 161 million hungry people in the so-called giant of Africa?” one user lamented on X. Another tweeted, “What is the government doing besides counting hungry mouths?”

International bodies, including the World Food Programme and the UN, have also raised concerns about Nigeria’s worsening hunger situation. They warn that without swift intervention, the country could become the epicenter of a regional food crisis in West Africa, with spillover effects into neighboring nations already dealing with their own vulnerabilities.

As the country battles fuel scarcity, rising transport costs, power shortages, and now this shocking surge in food insecurity, many are left wondering what more ordinary Nigerians must endure. The question now is no longer whether there’s hunger in the land — it’s whether Nigeria can survive it.