AGRICULTURE AND FOOD SECURITY IN NIGERIA
By Dr. Patrick O. Erhabor
January 24th. 2015
AGRICULTURE AND FOOD SECURITY IN NIGERIA
BACKGROUND
Since the establishment of The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in 1945, it has been preoccupied with addressing the problem of global famine, and this has, over the years, led to massive increases in food production. Despite improved productivity, many developing countries are experiencing food shortages, as increase in food production has been overwhelmed by higher increases in population. In many African countries, food security situation at both national and household level is poor. The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI, 2002) estimated that about eight million people go to bed hungry and 24,000 people die from hunger each day, even though the right to food is a basic international right. In the South African region alone, about 14 million people are in need of food aid within six different nations. Therefore, while population control should be encouraged in the developing countries, improved food production is imperative.
