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•Basket of tomatoes hits N150,000, pepper N80,000, palm fruits N30,000
…Hardship has reached suicidal level artisans, students lament
By Merit Ibe
Rising inflation, insecurity and dilapidated infrastructure have crippled food production in Nigeria, forcing commodity prices to stratospheric heights with no immediate hope of a fall.
The worrisome development, low-income Nigerians note, are driving them to suicidal levels as feeding has become a luxury they can no longer afford.
Checks by Daily Sun revealed that food prices increase on a daily basis, a development that accentuates the horrible food insufficiency nightmare Nigeria faces.
Market survey conducted by Daily Sun over the weekend shows that a basket of tomatoes has hit N150,000 from less than N30,000 it was last week.
A basket of pepper also climbed to N80,000 from N25,000. A sizeable tuber of yam now sells for N5,000 depending on the species as some are going for N8,000 a tuber.
Also affected are medicines, palm oil and vegetable oil and other foodstuff.
A grocer at Ajao estate market, Mrs Nnenna Agbo, said it was becoming increasingly difficult to restock her shop because of oscillating food prices amid diminishing production in many agrarian states and communities.
Another foodstuff seller, Yisa Abudul, blamed terrorism and banditry as the chief cause of food insufficiency.
“We find it extremely hard to go to the villages to buy goods because of the fear of being killed or kidnapped.
“So, the few things we manage to get are so expensive. It’s not our fault”, he said.
Also lamenting are students, artisans and other low-income earners, who told Daily Sun that it struggling to feed always brought suicidal thoughts due to their weak purchasing power.
“I’m a plumber married with three children but for weeks there are no jobs to do.
“On a daily basis, suicidal thoughts flood my mind because we practically rummage through leftovers to survive. This is worse than hell. I’ve never seen a worst time all my life”, he said.
The escalating food crisis resonates with the March prediction by Cadre Harmonise which revealed that no fewer than 31.5 million Nigerians face food insecurity between June and August 2024.
It was premised on the removal of the fuel subsidy, affecting the macroeconomics through inflation in agricultural inputs and transport.
The report noted that around 14000 IDPs and about 24.7 million people in 26 states of the country and the FCT stand the risk of going hungry between March and May 2024. Those in IDP camps totalled over 83,000 according to estimates.
