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Over 70m Nigerians Extremely Poor – World Poverty Clock
The number of extremely poor Nigerians currently stands at 71 million, according to 2023 data from World Poverty Clock.
The World Poverty Clock is a tool to monitor progress against poverty globally.
Tonye Cole, governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State, who quoted the data also said the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) classes 133 million people as multidimensionally poor.
He spoke Saturday in Abuja, at the Nigeria Zero Hunger Symposium, organised by T200 Foundation to mark World Hunger Day and unveiling of Nigeria’s hunger report.
Quoting the United Nations (UN), Cole said globally, 25,000 die daily from hunger, including more than 10,000 children.
According to him, Nigeria must design a simple, implementable, and sustainable poverty eradication model and stick to it over time.
He said, “Nigeria has the awful distinction of being the world capital of poverty, with 71 million people living in extreme poverty today (World Poverty Clock, 2023) and a total of 133 million people classed as multidimensionally poor according to National Bureau of Statistics data.
“In other words, about 828 million people will wake up every day having no idea when or where their next meal will come from, and many will go to bed that day without eating anything. This is according to a 2021 UN report. The UN further states that of these 828 million people, 25,000 will die today, including more than 10,000 children.
“Nigeria must design a simple, implementable, and sustainable poverty eradication model and stick to it over time.
“Other factors that contribute to hunger, such as violence, weak government, and health-care systems, must be addressed promptly if zero hunger is to be achieved. These are real difficulties in Nigeria and addressing them is critical not only for hunger eradication but also for the country’s overall progress.
“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s (GCFR) government is well positioned to push the goal of strengthening democratic institutions that will yield democratic dividends to the Nigerian people.”
According to the report by T200 Foundation, Nigeria has a Global Hunger Index score of 27.9, which falls into the serious hunger category. However, there are significant variations in the hunger index score across states.
It said the state with the highest hunger index score is Yobe, with a score of 44.2. Yobe also has the highest prevalence of undernourishment, which is 27.4%. This is more than twice the national average of 12.9%. Yobe also has the highest child-wasting rate of 22.5%, which is almost three times the national average of 7.9%.
Also, the state with the second-highest hunger index score is Sokoto, with a score of 42.1. Sokoto also has a high prevalence of undernourishment, which is 24.4%. The child wasting rate in Sokoto is 18.4%, which is more than twice the national average.
The report added that other states with high hunger index scores include Zamfara (37.2), Kebbi (34.5), and Jigawa (33.9). These states also have high rates of undernourishment and child wasting.
Amb. Emmanuel Osadebay, Executive Director T200 Foundation, said Nigeria needs collaboration among stakeholders to end hunger by 2030 in accordance with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Anambra State Sector Command, has confirmed the death of a woman in an accident at Okpoko Market on the Asaba-Onitsha Road.
The Sector Commander, Mr Adeoye Irelewuyi, who confirmed the accident to journalists in Awka on Thursday, said that the woman was hit while she was crossing the road.
He said that the accident, which occurred on Wednesday, involved a commercial tow truck with registration number XA550BMA.
“Eyewitness report reaching us indicates that the truck was towing a vehicle in an uncontrollable speed along the axis.
“The vehicle that was being towed got detached from the tow truck.
“It hit and killed a female adult, who was said to be crossing the road, while the tow truck continued its movement.
“FRSC rescue team came to the scene and took the woman to Toronto Hospital, Onitsha, where she was confirmed dead and her body deposited at the hospital’s mortuary,” he said.
While sympathising with the family of the dead, the sector commander urged motorists, especially tow truck drivers, to exercise a high level of professionalism.
He also urged the drivers to always use standard equipment and avoid speeding.
The Chairman, Poultry Association of Nigeria (PAN), Lagos State Chapter, Mr Mojeed Iyiola, said the state government’s maize palliative to members of the association made a positive impact on the sector.
Iyiola said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Lagos.
“We received about 150,000 tons of maize in February from the Lagos State government as palliative to cushion the effect of high feed prices.
“The major benefit of the palliative is that it actually cushioned the cost of production for most poultry farmers in the state.
“The palliative was beneficial as it made the cost of some poultry produce, especially eggs to drop,” Iyiola said.
He noted that prior to the palliative, a crate of egg was sold between N3,500 and N3,700 at the farm gate, but after the palliative, it now sells between N3,200 and N3,400.
According to the PAN chair, retailers and middlemen who sell from N3,800 to N4,200 do that for their personal gain.
“We have urged our members to sell their eggs at reasonable prices following the receipt of the palliative from the government.
“We appreciate the Lagos State government for the palliative but we also urge the federal government to do likewise, to further reduce the cost of production in the sector.
“This will consequently lead to drop in the prices of all poultry produce across board,” he said.
He said the palliative was shared among financial members of the association at no extra cost.
“As an association we shared the grains equally across PAN’s eight zones in the state equally. We also mandated each zone not the sell even a grain of the maize.
“We, however, considered new poultry farmers who wanted to the join the association as beneficiaries of the palliative,” said Iyiola.
He noted that through the palliative, more poultry farmers were recruited into the association.
“The maize was shared only to poultry farmers and not feed millers, it is the major component of poultry feed formulation,” he said.
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