Rivers State Governorship candidate of All Progressives Congress (APC), Tonye Cole, has said the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are the remedy to the worsening food insecurity and poverty in Nigeria.
According to him, the concept of stomach infrastructure popularised by the Former Governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose, which has been adopted by other politicians and the government was not a solution to the emerging hunger crisis in the country.
Cole said this at the unveiling of Nigeria’s hunger report and Nigeria Zero Hunger Symposium organised by T200 Foundation in commemoration of World Hunger Day at the weekend in Abuja.
Cole while quoting the World poverty clock, 2023 report, bemoaned that Nigeria has the awful experience of being the world capital of poverty, with 71 million people living in extreme poverty, adding that a total of 133 million people are regarded as multidimensionally poor according to National Bureau of Statistics data.
The politician noted that government must tackle issues such as violence, weak government, and healthcare systems if zero hunger is to be achieved.
These, according to him, are real difficulties in Nigeria, noting that addressing them is critical not only for hunger eradication but also for the country’s overall progress.
“Unless Nigeria meets the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) 2030 target, Africa will fail to attain the SDG, adding that should Africa fail, the global agenda for SDG 2030 will fail”, Cole stated.
He said, “The World Bank reports that China transitioned 800 million people out of extreme poverty and effectively eradicated extreme poverty from their society by 2020. This is a country that had over a billion people living in poverty in the 1970s.
“The campaign to eradicate poverty is underway, and the lesson for Nigeria and other developing nations grappling with high rates of extreme poverty is that eradication is attainable, and with it one of the primary causes of hunger.
“It is instructive that China accomplished this using a two-pronged method. The first strategic pillar, according to the World Bank study, was to implement a broad-based economic transformation to create new economic possibilities and boost average incomes. The second strategic pillar entailed providing targeted assistance for poverty alleviation.
“This assistance was first given to geographically disadvantaged areas with little economic options, and eventually to individual households. These factors that drive extreme poverty and, inevitably, hunger are similar to what exists in Nigeria today, which means that to meet the SDG 2 target of zero hunger through poverty eradication, Nigeria must also design a simple, implementable, and sustainable model and stick to it over time.
“This is undoubtedly more sophisticated than the famous ‘stomach infrastructure’ popularized by former governor Ayo Fayose, but it must be as simple to the masses as ‘stomach infrastructure’ is to them.
“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.
“It is pertinent to note here that Nigeria has a target to lift 100 million people out of poverty through the National Poverty Reduction with Growth Strategy (NPRGS). Nigeria, it seems has taken a leaf out of the China play book by focusing on a two-prong strategy to tackle this problem.
“An estimated USS1.6 trillion was earmarked for the 10-year programme spanning 2021-2031, equating to US$161 billion per annum. The budget covers the dual objective of lifting 100 million Nigerians out of poverty and achieving all the country’s development objectives in line with the Sustainable Development Goals 2030. This includes SDG 2 Zero Hunger.”
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