By Isaac Anyaogu

LAGOS (Reuters) – More than 31.8 million Nigerians are suffering from acute food shortages due to security problems and the removal of fuel subsidies, the government said on Tuesday, citing a study by several of the country’s international development partners.

The extent of the shortages, which have led to malnutrition among women and children, was outlined by development partners at a meeting with the government on Monday and Tuesday, the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning said in a statement.

The results indicate a sharp increase in the 18.6 million people identified by the United Nations World Food Programme as being at risk of acute food insecurity between October and December 2023.

“The rise in food prices, due to security concerns and the abolition of fuel subsidies, has left millions of Nigerians in a precarious situation,” the ministry said.

Raids by bandits wielding guns and machetes have forced many farmers to abandon their fields, leading to higher food prices and soaring inflation as Nigeria faces its worst cost-of-living crisis in a generation.

President Bola Tinubu, who took office in May 2023, eliminated fuel subsidies to reduce government spending, leading to a rise in transport costs.

The study was prepared by development partners such as the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition and the German development agency GIZ.

The study used statistics from a nutrition analysis by Cadre Harmonise, a regional framework organization on food security.

Sanjo Faniran, Nigeria’s National Food Systems Coordinator and Director of Social Development in the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, said the study helped identify gaps, successes and challenges and make recommendations.

(Reporting by Isaac Anyaogu, editing by William Maclean)