Atiku warns famine in north will hurt Nigeria

Atiku says famine in northern Nigeria has national, and even sub-regional, impact.

Former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, has urged the Federal Government to deal with the famine concerns in the north because it will hurt the entire country.

The former presidential candidate said in a statement on Friday, July 30, 2021 that the latest warning by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of a looming acute food crisis in the region should not be ignored.

He said the north is the nation's food basket and any famine there would have national, and even sub-regional, impact.

The 74-year-old condemned the government's casual approach to the problem as regrettable.

"Food security is a vital part of national security, and where this issue is not resolved, the resultant crisis may unsettle the nation and her immediate neighbours.

"Now is the time to proffer solutions, so that our countrymen and women do not starve in a land with so much prospective abundance," he said.

Atiku, an investor in large-scale farming, noted insecurity as the major cause of the famine crisis, a problem he said must be solved urgently.

Escalating insecurity in the most prominent farming communities has displaced many farmers, or made others reluctant to go to their farms. This has partly affected food inflation which hit 21.83% last month.

Atiku recommended that Federal and State governments establish a Food Security Military Taskforce to provide security for farmers.

"We must give confidence to our agriculture workers, so that the sector can get on with the job of feeding the nation," he said.

The former VP also recommended governments place a temporary moratorium on all loans to the agricultural sector, particularly in affected states.

He said the Federal Government must also intervene by providing free seedlings and fertilisers to the end users, a policy he said worked to reduce hunger levels in the past.

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