THE plan by the World Bank to raise $1.6 billion to combat hunger in Nigeria, three other Sub-Saharan African countries, and Yemen, is a welcome effort to counter famine in Africa and beyond. The plan is, indeed, a clarion call to other well-meaning individuals and organisations to contribute to the global battle against famine. This problem is already increasing the number of refugees from the affected parts of these countries, including Nigeria’s North-East region.
The World Bank initiative is contained in an impassioned statement by its Group President, Jim Yong-Kim. He described famine as a “stain on our collective conscience”, and noted that “millions of lives are at risk and more will die if we do not act quickly and decisively”. He also pledged that the World Bank Group will stand in solidarity with the people now threatened by famine. The countries identified as being on the “tipping point” of famine are Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen.
The $1.6bn financial package will be used to build social protection systems, strengthen community resilience and maintain service delivery to the most vulnerable people, while priority attention will be given to collaborating with partners around the world to ensure that families have access to food and water. The $1.6bn initiative will include the existing $870m operations helping communities threatened by famine. This is in addition to ongoing efforts by the Bank’s Board of Directors to secure the approval of new operations totaling $770m, funded substantially through the International Development Associations (IDAs) crisis response window.
The World Bank intervention is coming at the right time. Currently, the United Nations estimates that no fewer than 20 million people in Nigeria, South Sudan, Somalia and Yemen are ravaged by famine. About 1.4 million children are at risk of dying this year from malnutrition in the countries mentioned. Three UN agencies, Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), the World Food Programme (WFP), and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), have all predicted imminent famine in the countries the World Bank intends to channel its $1.6bn intervention. There is also drought in parts of Uganda and Tanzania. In Somalia, for instance, famine in 2011 reportedly killed about 260,000 people and left hundreds of thousands homeless. And in South Sudan where famine was officially declared on February 20 this year, about 100,000 people have reportedly died. In Yemen, thousands are suffering from severe malnutrition, while the figure in North-East Nigeria is estimated to be 450,000.
North-East Nigeria is currently experiencing one of the most devastating humanitarian crises in decades as a result of the terrorist attacks by the Boko Haram insurgent group which has left millions homeless. Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) Camps have sprouted up in many states in the North-East and beyond. Efforts to resettle these displaced persons have not yielded the desired result. Most of the IDP camps have challenges, including food shortages and health issues. The states and federal government are finding it increasingly difficult to cope with this humanitarian crisis.
Let the World Bank funds be properly utilised. The use of the money should be closely monitored in the affected countries. The report that the World Bank is working with the Federal Government to empower Nigerian farmers with farming input and insurance for their crops is encouraging.
Nigeria is an entrepreneurial economy with an estimated 37 million Micro, Small and Medium-size Enterprises (MSMEs) whose contribution to economic growth and job creation is significant. These MSMEs can help more to achieve government’s food security objectives if they are given the necessary financial support.
While these efforts are commendable, it is necessary to fully appraise the remote and immediate causes of famine in the countries identified as being at risk of serious hunger. It is also advisable to seek a permanent solution to the conflicts ravaging places like South Sudan, Somalia, parts of Kenya, and of course, North-East Nigeria.
Unless the conflicts in these areas are resolved, the problem of hunger will persist. Famine brings lack of access to basic food, with people suffering severe malnutrition and death. Children under the age of five are disproportionately affected. Though the Federal Government had, in the past, denied that Nigeria was at risk of famine, latest reports indicate that government should take the warning seriously. This, it can do, by working closely with the World Bank and the country’s other development partners to win the battle against hunger in the country.