Food shortage: I will establish Enugu Strategic Food Reserve in 2023, says Frank Nweke

The All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) governorship candidate in Enugu, Frank Nweke, has pledged to establish Enugu Strategic Food Reserve (ESFR) to end food shortage in the state if elected in 2023.

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Nweke stated this in a statement issued by his Media Campaign Manager, Innocent Dikin on Saturday in Enugu.

He said the initiative was aimed at providing succour to low-income earners and vulnerable communities with one centre of ESFR in each of the senatorial zone.

According him, the idea is to ensure that nobody goes hungry, adding that they will have a robust data-driven plan to place families on a food distribution program for specific durations.

“The Enugu Strategic Food Reserve (ESFR) will not be a purely charitable venture. It will be designed as a social enterprise to serve more than one purpose.

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“Through the ESFR, we will provide a ready market for thousands of farmers as we purchase and store farm produce from them.

“It will also serve as a needed storage facility to salvage a portion of the estimated 40 per cent of agricultural produce lost due to the unavailability of good storage facilities.

The governorship candidate further said they would work with the Agricultural Innovation Centres that would be set up across the six agricultural zones.

He added that they would leverage on agricultural cooperatives that would ensure profitability to the farmers through improved farm inputs.

“During the rainy and festive seasons that are notorious for price hikes, we will use the ESFR to moderate food prices by strategically releasing stored grains and other key food items into the market. {ad}