The 2027 presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, has described the worsening food crisis in northern Nigeria as a “profound national failure,” blaming the situation on poor leadership, insecurity and inadequate investment in agriculture.

Reacting via a post on Saturday to a recent warning by the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), Obi said the looming humanitarian crisis was avoidable, stressing that northern Nigeria, regarded as the country’s food basket, should not be facing widespread hunger.

According to the former Anambra State governor, the crisis reflects years of misplaced priorities and failure to protect farming communities.

“The recent report from the UN about the impending food crisis in northern Nigeria is disheartening, more so because it is avoidable. Northern Nigeria is the nation’s food basket, and nothing short of incompetent and irresponsible leadership could have created this tragedy,” Obi said.

He revealed that he had earlier called on the Federal Government and state governments to urgently review their priorities by investing transparently in agriculture, securing farming communities and strengthening partnerships with humanitarian organisations to avert a full-scale disaster.

“I urged our national leaders to reassess their priorities and address the dire circumstances facing our citizens. I call on the Federal Government and state leaders to move beyond mere political discourse and make transparent, upfront investments to secure agricultural corridors, support smallholder farmers with accessible resources, and collaborate vigorously with organisations like the World Food Programme to bridge funding gaps before this crisis escalates and claims more lives, especially those of children,” he stated.

Obi expressed concern over the WFP’s findings, which indicate that northern Nigeria is facing its worst hunger crisis in almost a decade, with more than 17 million people across nine northern states already experiencing crisis-level food insecurity, while over 35 million Nigerians nationwide could face severe hunger during the current lean season.

He described the report as alarming, particularly the revelation that more than 10,000 residents of Borno State have slipped into what humanitarian agencies classify as “catastrophic” hunger conditions.

“The fact that over 10,000 residents of Borno State have entered ‘catastrophic’ hunger conditions represents not only immense human suffering but also a profound national failure,” Obi said.

“Nigeria should not rank among the world’s hungriest nations, given its abundant resources, particularly the vast stretches of fertile, uncultivated land in the North.”

Obi attributed the worsening food insecurity to persistent insecurity and the inability of farmers to access their farmlands, noting that banditry and insurgency have displaced farming communities and crippled agricultural production.

“This food crisis stems from two critical structural failures: insecurity and farmers’ inability to access their lands. Banditry and insurgency have turned agrarian communities into displacement zones. Until we secure our agricultural areas, we cannot secure our future,” he said.

The former presidential candidate further criticised what he described as superficial government interventions, arguing that they have failed to improve agricultural productivity or rural infrastructure.

He urged authorities to adopt long-term policies that remove structural barriers to farming and transform Nigeria’s vast arable land into productive agro-industrial assets.

“We need to adopt policies that address the structural barriers to agricultural productivity and transform our land resources into agro-industrial output. We can overcome hunger and poverty if we urgently shift our focus from consumption to production,” Obi added.

He maintained that Nigeria has the capacity to eliminate hunger and mass poverty but insisted that this would only be possible with leadership that places the welfare of citizens above what he described as “grandiose road dualisation projects.”

“A New Nigeria, devoid of hunger and mass poverty—a Nigeria where we transform our arable land into productive acreage—remains attainable, but it demands leadership that prizes the lives and livelihoods of the Nigerian people above grandiose road dualisation projects,” he added.