Business
Independence Day: Nigerians still battling food with insecurity
Nigeria’s food prices have continued to skyrocket, putting immense pressure on households across the country. In May, food inflation surged to 40.66%, making it increasingly difficult for people to afford basic food items. However, there is a glimmer of hope as headline inflation dropped to 32.15% relative to the July 2024
headline inflation rate of 33.40%. Looking at the movement, the August 2024 headline inflation rate showed a decrease of 1.25% points when compared to the July 2024 headline inflation rate.
The 1.25% drop in the headline index was attributed to slower price growth in food and commodities, according to the NBS. A further survey by Hallmark shows that the ease did not trickle down to all food commodities, as some prices still showed an upward trend.
Speaking to marketers about the NBS food inflation ease, they disagreed, saying that most of the food commodities are still topping up prices and they are incurring losses as they cannot increase the prices because their customers will not buy. “I still sell at the same price even though the prices of food are still going up because if I increase my price, I will lose my customers and this has caused me to cut down on my gains.”
Another marketer who deals with tomatoes said that the price of tomatoes has come down compared to what it was in May. He said the price of tomatoes crashed by half, “Before, we used to buy a basket of tomatoes ₦52,000 to ₦58,000 depending on the quality and freshness, but now we buy at ₦28,000 to ₦31,000, which is why we sell at N6000 for one paint compared to what we used to sell before, which is ₦12,000 or ₦12,500 for a paint.” he said
Food prices
While the ease in food inflation is a beacon of hope for Nigerians, households are still forced to prioritize spending and skip meals due to shrinking incomes, with the federal government still yet to commence payment of the new minimum wage of ₦70,000 per month approximately US$42.35 monthly. The minimum wage of ₦70,000 can barely cover the expenses of an average Nigerian family, let alone provide a decent standard of living.
The situation is critical, with many families struggling to access nutritious food and many moving to alternative culinary innovation to still maintain a nutritious diet.
For Mrs. Chioma Ndubisi, a civil servant, the economy is stifling, and food is not the only thing she worries about because she has yet to pay her children’s tuition for the new school session. According to her, the prices of food are still on the rise as commodities like onions and crayfish are more expensive than before. “Just the other day, I went to the market to price bags of onions and crayfish with the contributions made by my colleagues, and I was told that a bag of crayfish is now ₦175,000, an item that sold ₦125,000 and even ₦145,000, last month”
Also, Mr. Nnamani Ogbonna fears that the prices of food items that crashed will still rise once the harvest season leaves.
According to the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Nigerians will spend a whopping 54.9% of their income on food in the next six months. This is due to the country’s high inflation rate.
The situation is dire, with 4.8 million people struggling to access food, marking the highest levels of severe food insecurity in seven years. The most vulnerable groups include children, pregnant women, older persons, and people living with disabilities. To combat this crisis, an urgent appeal has been launched to tackle the alarming rise in severe acute malnutrition among children, with a staggering 700,000 expected to suffer from acute malnutrition in the next six months
However, the government, along with national and international partners, has launched an urgent appeal for $306 million to provide essential assistance to those in dire need in the North-East region of the country. This funding will support critical interventions in food assistance, nutrition supplies, clean water, healthcare, and protection services, targeting approximately 2.8 million vulnerable individuals;
Mr. Mohamed Malick Fall, the UN Resident Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria, launched this humanitarian plan in Abuja in May 2024 stating that the goal is to tackle the severe food insecurity and malnutrition crisis in Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe states.
As Nigeria grapples with soaring food prices, it’s clear that urgent action is needed to ensure food security to alleviate the suffering of millions.