Practical necessities toward food security

In the last one month, public attention has been drawn to what has become part of our collective experience. On at least two different occasions, the apparently unending change in the pump price of fuel has drastically affected market forces in the country. That the country operates a mono-economy is no longer news, the concern therefore, is that whatever happens, for good or for ill, to the price of petroleum products has inevitable knock-on effect on every sector of the economy not the least prices of food items.

In response to the social and economic impact of his somewhat earthshaking pronouncement on May 29 that ‘subsidy is gone’,  President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has, rightly, declared a ‘state of emergency on food security’ ostensibly  as an urgent measure to improve national food supply, and make  basic food items more affordable for the  average citizen.

It is trite to say that it is the constitutional obligation of government to assure the welfare and the right to life of the people. This much is expressed in Section 14 (2) that stipulates security and welfare as the ‘primary purpose of government’ (b) and Section 17 (2)(b), that says ‘the sanctity of the human person shall be recognized and human dignity  shall be maintained  and enhanced’, and even Section 17(3)(g) which requires that  ‘provisions is made for public assistance in deserving cases or other conditions of need…’.

Food security in order to ensure a healthy, able, and productive citizenry ought to be such a given that, it is not unreasonable to take it for granted in a normal polity. It is regrettable however, that in Nigeria,  political leaders in government are wont to mouth declarations, write manifestoes  full of promises, and make statements of commitment to the security  and welfare of the  voters but do little to show for these.

Admittedly, there is perhaps no country that does not have food challenges, but what makes the Nigeria’s challenge different is that our political leaders seem unable to find a solution to make agriculture work.

It is not only logical but appropriate as well that emergency be declared on food security going by the rising cost of food. Expectedly, food to a people generates such abiding satisfaction and assurance irrespective of class, gender or religion.  The rising cost of food items and its effect on the pocket of citizens has brought in its wake tension among and pressure on the people, which seems to undermine the Hope-Renewed programme of the Tinubu administration.

Consequent on Tinubu’s urgent response to the arguable grave effect of rising food prices, Special Adviser to the President on Special Duties, Communications and Strategy, Dele Alake called for a synergy between the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Water Resources. The objective, according to him is to ensure adequate irrigation of farmlands and guarantee that food is produced all year round.

The point must be made that successive government make the right statements in favour of raising agricultural productivity as a means to achieve food security for the nation. Indeed, if words could build barns and silos of food products, Nigeria would be among the major exporters of food items in the world. It may be recalled that then President Muhammadu Buhari pledged that under his tenure, the country would eat what it produced and produce what it ate.

It never happened until his tenure expired. This country actually became less food secure because of the widespread acts of terrorism that drove farmers out of their farms. So, currently, insecurity has made farming impossible as farmers now avoid their farmlands for fear of being kidnapped or killed. Coupled with this is the persistent clash between herders and farmers that force large farming population to relocate to IDP camps where they simply idle away. Nonetheless, they too must eat something even as they are unable to work. This cannot, nay must not, be acceptable to any government worthy to be so called.

It needs to be said directly that, notwithstanding the immediate responsiveness of the president to the threat posed by the high fuel prices, he must address the matter of national food security from a more fundamental, and better thought-through and holistic perspective.  The country must be made safe for farmers to farm and other ancillary activities to function safely and unhindered.

The Tinubu administration pledged that “We will engage our security architecture to protect the farms and the farmers so that farmers can return to the farmlands without fear of attacks”. This must be done and seen to be done. For a citizenry too use to government promises without action, the new administration must utilise its ‘honeymoon period’ to earn the trust of the electorate by walking its talk. The Tinubu government must make a difference in agriculture with the current emergency declared on food security.

As part of the emergency measures, this administration seems set to achieve its aim as 500,000 hectares of land is already mapped out to increase the availability of arable land for farming that will positively impact food output. According to Alake, the administration’s plan is to ensure continuous farming production all year round with the aid of the 11 river basin through irrigation schemes to stem the seasonal glut and scarcity of food. The issue of national priority has to be addressed when it comes to food as the people bore the brunt of rising cost of food.

It is gratifying that the Tinubu administration has shown a reasonable level of seriousness to ensure that there is sufficient and affordable food for the citizens. However, these huge assurances on food sufficiency are hinged on hope and performance. Nigerians can only hope that  the Tinubu known for his smart and dogged approach to issues will also apply these qualities until the country under him achieve not merely food sufficiency but the much desired food security.