Northern Nigeria on brink of major food crisis, WFP warns

The United Nations’ World Food Programme (WFP) has warned that northern Nigeria is on the brink of its worst food crisis in nearly a decade, urging immediate intervention to prevent millions from slipping deeper into hunger as insecurity and dwindling humanitarian funding continue to worsen conditions across the region.

In a recent statement, the agency said escalating violence, mass displacement and severe funding shortages have accelerated food insecurity beyond earlier projections, leaving millions of vulnerable people without access to life-saving assistance.

According to the WFP, more than 17 million people across nine conflict-affected states in northern Nigeria are currently experiencing crisis, emergency or catastrophic levels of hunger—an increase of nearly two million people compared to previous estimates.

The agency said Borno State remains the worst-hit state, where intensified insurgent attacks and reduced humanitarian assistance have left over three million people acutely food insecure. More than 750,000 residents are experiencing severe hunger, while over 10,000 people are facing catastrophic food shortages.

The WFP Regional Director for West and Central Africa, Kinday Samba, expressed concern over the expanding reach of insecurity beyond traditional conflict zones.

“What concerns us most is how this crisis is expanding. For years, insurgent attacks and violence were largely concentrated in parts of Northeast Nigeria. Today, they are spreading across a much wider area, forcing people off their farmland, driving displacement and restricting humanitarian access, meaning hunger is quick to follow,” Samba said.

The agency disclosed that worsening insecurity has significantly reduced its capacity to deliver food assistance, with the number of inaccessible locations doubling due to attacks and illegal checkpoints along major transport routes.

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According to the WFP, humanitarian workers now rely largely on air transport to reach many affected communities because road access has become increasingly dangerous.

Although about 6.2 million people across the three northeastern states require urgent food assistance, the agency said it currently has resources to support only 740,000 people, leaving approximately 5.5 million individuals—many of them children—without life-saving food and nutrition support.

The figure marks a sharp decline from the 1.3 million people assisted during the peak of the 2025 lean season.

The organisation warned that funding shortages have already forced the suspension of food assistance in several communities, compelling many households to adopt desperate survival strategies.

Reports from affected communities, according to the WFP, indicate that some vulnerable individuals are joining armed groups in search of food or income, while women and children are increasingly exposed to exploitation and gender-based violence following the suspension of aid in some displacement camps.

The latest alert follows a series of previous warnings from international organisations over Nigeria’s worsening food security situation.

In 2024, the WFP warned that soaring inflation—then above 33 percent—had severely eroded household purchasing power, particularly among low-income families.

Earlier, the World Bank had reported that rising inflation pushed about seven million Nigerians into poverty in 2020, identifying food inflation, insecurity, unemployment and slow economic reforms as major obstacles to economic growth.

The bank’s Lead Economist for Nigeria, Marco Hernandez, noted at the time that rising food prices were worsening poverty and food insecurity.

Similarly, in 2022, the United Nations reported that about 70 percent of residents in Nigeria’s North West were living below the poverty line.

Reacting to the latest report, stakeholders argued that worsening insecurity remains the primary cause of Nigeria’s food crisis, as many farmers have abandoned their farms due to attacks by bandits and insurgents.

President of the Middle Belt Forum, Pogu Bitrus, urged the Federal Government to intensify efforts against banditry, kidnapping and terrorism to enable farmers to return to their fields.

He also called for a review of government economic policies that may have compounded citizens’ hardship.

Policy analyst James Adedayo criticised the government’s inability to restore security in farming communities, arguing that farmers must be protected if Nigeria hopes to overcome food shortages.

He also urged authorities to support humanitarian organisations financially and provide adequate security to enable aid agencies to deliver food to vulnerable communities.

Other commentators expressed concern over rising food prices and accused the government of failing to prioritise food security despite repeated warnings from international organisations.

Retired teacher Adekunle Ajibade called on the government to provide both funding and security support for humanitarian agencies distributing relief materials, while real estate agent Rowland Adebayo argued that ensuring food security should be among the government’s highest priorities, given Nigeria’s agricultural potential.