Shettima tasks lawmakers on food security legislations

Vice President Kashim Shettima has implored lawmakers across the nation to enact relevant legislations that will enhance nutrition and food security to ensure that every household in Nigeria has access to diets required for a healthy and productive life.

This, according to him, is the reason why the administration is spearheading the Nutrition 774 Initiative to improve coordination, financing, and accountability in ensuring “that every mother and child, regardless of where they live, has access to lifesaving nutrition interventions tailored to their needs.”

Speaking when he met with the National Legislative Network on Nutrition and Food Security, led by the leader of the delegation and Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Nutrition and Food Security, Chike Okafor, at the Presidential Villa, Shettima underscored the role of the legislature in making the Nutrition 774 initiative a success.

Calling for immediate action, the Vice President told the lawmakers that by investing in nutrition, the nation would be investing in national security, long-term stability and economic growth, even as he warned that desperation would always set in whenever people struggle to eat.

Earlier, Okafor said his committee had the core mandate of looking at existing laws on nutrition and food and amending them to bring them up to speed with global realities.

He said: “We engaged the Conference of Speakers of the 36 State Houses of Assembly, and today, we are happy to report that all state assemblies now have committees on nutrition and food security.”

According to Okafor, key legislative reforms under consideration include extending maternity leave from three to six months, regulating the sale of bulk and potentially adulterated vegetable oil in open markets, and addressing multiple taxations on food products transported across different regions of the country.