Peter Obi (right) with one of the organisers of the event.
By Valentine Amanze
The Labour Party (LP) Presidential candidate in the 2023 general election, Mr. Peter Obi, has called for adequate investment in agriculture to end Africa’s food crisis.
Obi made the appeal during his presentation as one of the panellists at the international conference on “Africa Food Systems Forum 2024”, in Kigali, Rwandan capital, on Friday.
Obi decried Africa’s over-reliance on food importation to feed its population.
He also said that reducing reliance on food imports would help ease the strain on the continent’s currency, steady exchange rates, and rein in inflationary pressures driven by high food costs.
Writing on his X handle, @PeterObi, from Rwanda, Obi said, “Today, I was one of the panellists at the Africa Food Systems Forum 2024 held in the Rwandan capital Kigali.
“At the session, I reiterated my long-held position that food insecurity in Africa is intrinsically linked to human insecurity.
Also read: Obi decries govt’s attitude on security
“Using Nigeria as an example, I emphasized that solving food insecurity is a major path to general security in the country. By investing in agriculture and food-related productivity Nigeria will not only be addressing the hunger crisis but will also create huge job opportunities for the teeming unemployed population, especially the youths in their productive age.
“To further elucidate the untapped potential in our food production, Bangladesh, with approximately 148,000 square kilometres less than 1/6th of Nigeria’s about 923,768 square kilometres, produces 35-40 million tons of rice annually. In contrast, Nigeria produces only 3-4 million tons of rice, which is roughly 10% of Bangladesh’s rice production.
“This disparity which is similar to the African situation highlights the untapped potential of Africa’s agricultural sector and underscores the need for investment.”
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