Born to be a foodie, forced to be a Nigerian
The UN says Nigeria’s hunger problem is getting worse
Good morning, Big Brains. These days, I have to convince myself that ordering food on Chowdeck isn’t the financially irresponsible decision Nigeria makes it look like. And no matter how much I try to convince myself, I still don’t buy it. I can’t even begin to imagine how worse it is for low-income families in Nigeria.
- Margaret
Word count: ~ 1,000
Reading time ~ 5 mins
Let’s get into today’s edition:
The UN says Nigeria’s hunger problem is getting worse
Trump is inserting himself in the Israel vs. Iran business again
The Big Deal
The UN says Nigeria’s hunger problem is getting worse
There are many things Nigeria can take from you, and your foodie genes are one of those things.
According to a new United Nations (UN) report released on Monday, June 16, things are about to get even worse. Nigeria has been listed among 13 countries where extreme hunger is expected to intensify in the coming months, and it’s not just because food is expensive — it’s because people are literally being displaced, blocked from accessing aid, and pushed to the brink by economic collapse and conflict.
Countries like Sudan, South Sudan, Palestine, Haiti and Mali are already experiencing deadly levels of hunger and Nigeria is slowly making its way to the top of that list too. The situation, according to the UN, could get so much worse.
Why is this a big deal?
This isn’t the first time the UN has issued this kind of warning to Nigeria. In June 2024, the UN warned the Nigerian government to take the country’s rising insecurity problem seriously to prevent a famine. From the looks of things, the government didn’t exactly complete the assignment.
What’s even worse is that we are almost contesting with countries that are literally at war. While the food inflation rate may have dropped on paper, this recent report shows that we are nowhere near escaping the famine predictions.
Last year, the National Emergency Operations Centre (NEOC), confirmed that increasing flood levels have affected over 115, 265 hectares of farmlands in Nigeria. As the country continues to lose farmlands, we’ll also keep losing our chances of making it out of this food crisis.
With the rising violence in the Northen Central and Northern part of Nigeria, which account for over 70% of Nigeria’s agricultural activity, we’re at more risk of food insecurity than ever.
If you’re wondering where that leaves regular citizens like us, a 2024 report by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) gives us a pretty solid idea — in the deepest depths of the trenches, where we’ll have no choice but to spend about 54.9% of our income on food. But low-income families whose income isn’t enough to afford the rising food prices in Nigeria are at the worst end of this crisis.
Given that this UN warning came in 2024 and is making a return in 2025, we might actually find ourselves in one of the worst eras of food crisis Nigeria has ever experienced.
Trump is inserting himself in the Israel vs. Iran business again
Whoever came up with the “let sleeping dogs lie” saying must have experienced their fair share of life’s troubles, because they completely snapped with it. But if you ask U.S President Donald Trump, he probably wouldn’t agree.
Remember when he warned Iran not to think of attacking his country? Well, he’s the one talking about attacking now.
On Tuesday, June 17, Trump hopped on his social media platform, Truth Social, to let everyone know that the U.S. knows exactly where Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is hiding, but won’t attempt to kill him…for now.
Moments later, he posted two interesting words: “UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!.” The not-so-friendly words have now left people wondering how far the U.S is willing to go in siding with Israel’s ongoing strikes against Iran.
While Trump keeps insisting the U.S. isn’t officially involved in the conflict, he also made another statement on Tuesday that makes that claim hard to believe. “We have complete and total control of the skies over Iran,” he said.
With tensions between Iran and Israel at an all-time high, Trump’s statements are increasingly sounding like threats, and it’s getting harder to defend them. Never thought the day would come where we’d thank God for not subjecting us to another T-led administration, but we have too much on our plate to be worrying about missiles.
Your next big read
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The Big Picks
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Benue Attacks Displaced 6,527 Residents, Says NEMA: The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) on Monday said that 6,527 people have so far been displaced by the attacks in Benue State.
This Week’s Big Question
On a scale of one to ten, how happy are you to be a Nigerian and why?
Imiee’s response - “100 out of 10. I'm so glad to be a Nigerian especially in a time like this. Nothing beats this feeling and I mean this wholeheartedly .”
You can also share your response here, and if it’s as interesting as Imiee’s, we’ll feature it in the next edition.
Let’s settle this thing…
Take a quiz before you leave
Will You Make Generational Wealth?: Share your results and tag us on social media.
Play catch up
Our village people have won this round
The whole country is still mourning the tragedy that claimed about 200 lives in Benue on Friday, June 13, but experts are already sharing theories that suggest that this might not be the last gruesome attack in this state.