Our community member noted that England was possibly melting down because “ehe resources of this Earth are scarce”, and people are competing over scarce resources. I responded thus (expanded below):

‘”The resources of this Earth are scarce” – that was what Adam Smith possibly taught you via his theories. But if you pay deep attention, less than 0.1% of the universe has been explored. How many are we in this world to talk of scarcity?

‘Scarcity is created out of hatred and it is the illusion of the mind. Since I came to America, I have struggled to pray before eating (a bad thing for a Scripture Union kid). Why? My challenge is how to avoid food and not to find food. Yes, eating food is a problem, and nothing to be thankful for! You see food everyone. They dump uncooked on the doors of the church.  Looking at it, the food we waste in the US can feed hungry kids around the world if someone wants to do that. But you know what happens? They send them to the oceans.’

Where am I going? Nigeria has scaled poverty at an unprecedented level in a world of plenty: “In a stark reminder of Nigeria’s deepening food crisis, the latest State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2024 report has revealed that approximately 172 million Nigerians are unable to afford a healthy diet. This harrowing statistic, highlighted by a report from FAO, IFAD, UNICEF, WFP, and WHO, has once again, underlined the severity of food insecurity and malnutrition plaguing the nation.”

No matter how you look at this, we cannot say that Nigeria does not have resources. The real issue is why we have been unable as a people to organize all the factors of production to provide food security to our people. The score does not look good: 172 million hungry out of 210 million means the nation is failing its people, and that must change.

Nigeria’s Food Security Crisis: 172 Million Nigerians Unable to Afford a Healthy Diet

In a stark reminder of Nigeria’s deepening food crisis, the latest State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2024 report has revealed that approximately 172 million Nigerians are unable to afford a healthy diet. This harrowing statistic, highlighted by a report from FAO, IFAD, UNICEF, WFP, and WHO, has once again, underlined the severity of food insecurity and malnutrition plaguing the nation.

The report, titled “Financing to End Hunger, Food Insecurity and Malnutrition in All Its Forms,” paints a grim picture of a nation struggling to feed its populace. As of 2022, about 78.7% of Nigerians could not afford a healthy diet. The number of people unable to afford nutritious food has been steadily rising since 2017. Back then, 143.8 million Nigerians were affected, a figure that has grown year by year, reaching 172 million in 2022.

To afford a healthy diet in Nigeria, a person would need around $3.83 per day in 2022, translating to approximately N1,767.55 based on the exchange rate of N461.5/$1 at the end of December 2022. With the naira now trading at N1,617.08/$, the cost of a nutritious meal has soared, making it even more unattainable for millions.

“Nigeria has the fifth highest cost of a healthy diet in the West African sub-region, behind Mauritania ($4.86 per day), Ghana ($4.29 per day), Cabo Verde ($4.07 per day) and the Niger Republic ($3.96),” the report noted.

Moreover, the National Bureau of Statistics and the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition’s latest “Cost of Healthy Diet” report showed that the national average cost of a healthy diet rose to N1,241 per adult per day in June 2024 from N858 in January 2024. The report attributes this increase primarily to the rising costs of vegetables, legumes, nuts, seeds, and starchy staples.

#EndHunger Protests: A Nation’s Cry For Help Amid Tool Little Government Measures

Against this backdrop, the country is witnessing widespread protests under the #EndHunger movement. Nigerians are taking to the streets, demanding immediate action to combat hunger and malnutrition. Unfortunately, the government’s response is seen as lackluster and inadequate.

The Federal Government’s reaction to the crisis has been to distribute rice and disburse funds to state governments. For instance, the federal government, in the wake of the protests, announced the disbursement of N570 billion to states, in addition to truckloads of rice.

However, these measures have proven insufficient in addressing the root causes of food insecurity. The temporary relief provided by rice distribution and cash handouts fails to offer a sustainable solution to the ongoing hunger crisis.

In early July, the government announced a 150-day duty-free import window for food items imported through land and sea borders. This policy is intended to reduce the demand for foreign exchange by food importers and ease the food shortage. While this initiative might offer some relief, it is far from being a comprehensive solution to the systemic issues driving food insecurity, among them – insecurity.

The 2024 edition of the Global Report on Food Crises, which provides analysis and evidence on acute food insecurity, identified Nigeria as one of the 19 countries experiencing protracted major food crises over the past eight years. Alongside countries like Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, the Syrian Arab Republic, and Yemen, Nigeria consistently ranks among the top ten countries with the highest populations facing acute food insecurity.

In 2023, nearly 282 million people in 59 food-crisis countries faced high levels of acute food insecurity, with Nigeria being one of the top five most affected.

“These 19 countries have been in a major food crisis for the past eight years, and six countries (Afghanistan, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Syrian Arab Republic and Yemen) have consistently ranked among the top ten in terms of the population affected, with 108 million people facing acute food insecurity,” the report noted.

The report calls for significant improvements in the execution and quality of budget spending on food security. It emphasizes that even if more financing becomes available, necessary changes and reforms must be implemented to ensure higher execution and quality of spending.

“Even if more financing for food security and nutrition becomes available, changes and reforms are necessary to guarantee higher execution and quality of spending. The larger the required budget reallocations (e.g. Burkina Faso and Nigeria), the further away the country is from the optimal budget allocation. Optimal budget reallocations, irrespective of their size in each country, can significantly increase the value of public money,” the report added.

A Call for Sustainable Solutions

To tackle the hunger crisis, the government has been advised to prioritize food security and nutrition by implementing policies that address the root causes of hunger and malnutrition. This includes investing in agriculture, improving infrastructure, and ensuring that social safety nets are in place to protect the most vulnerable populations.

The road to eradicating hunger and malnutrition in Nigeria is long and fraught with challenges. However, experts believe that with the right policies and a committed effort from the government and all stakeholders, it is possible to achieve food security and ensure that every Nigerian has access to a healthy diet.

This is a skit, but we are using it to teach here.

This is a classic example why every company must and should administer a basic test before hiring. Listening to this guy, you will understand why HR puts you through those tests. There are things in life, and at work, no school or job will prepare you, because those things are expected, and are part of what makes us prepared to work.

Yet, you may not blame him 100% because Amazon did not invest in even telling him why he delivers packages. If they have done that, he would not be in the company uniform, and be speaking the way he has done. As far as he is concerned, the world ends on delivery packages – and why delivery happens, he has no idea.

If your company’s competitive positioning is to find the cheapest people to fill an ocean with buckets of water, from your borehole,  you are lost because there are available people who will accept the job, and they will come with their buckets, ready to fill the ocean! Good luck.

But if I may suggest one thing: hire smartly because the most important factor of production remains the human element, and in the tripod of people, processes and tools – the pillars of the mechanics of firms – if the people do not function, missions fade.

You need smarter people to execute the mission of firms.

The video is here