FG to Partner GAIN to Combat Food Insecurity, Post-Harvest Losses

Gilbert Ekugbe

The Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security has expressed its readiness to partner the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) in tackling food insecurity and post-harvest losses in the country.

The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Sen. Abubakar Kyari, during a courtesy visit by the Country Director GAIN, Dr. Micheal Ojo, in Abuja, pointed out that food security was one priority of President Bola Anmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which focuses on agriculture and food security as well as good nutrition.

In his words, “we were given the mandate to ensure that the country is food secured and we are ready to collaborate with partners to ensure its actualization and sustainability.”

The minister emphasised that the current state of food security was threatened by issues of availability and affordability, stressing that malnutrition and rates of food inflation required that we work all year round to ensure increased food production while putting in place, measures to make food available, accessible, affordable and of the right nutrition on a sustainable basis.

Earlier, the Country Director, GAIN, Dr. Micheal Ojo, stated that the organisation had enjoyed a good relationship with the Ministry over the years and hoped for its sustainability to transform the country’s food system.

He revealed that food and nutrition was a significant challenge for every Nigerian as over 90 per cent of the population could not afford healthy diet, which resulted in malnutrition and sometimes loss of lives.

Ojo noted that their aim was to work and deliver healthy diet to over 25 per cent of the population around the world, including Nigeria, was included, adding that the organisation intended to collaborate with the ministry in the area of food value chains such as maize, rice, cassava among others.