Taming The Monster Of Poverty

 By Adeze Ojukwu

The gory details of pain, anguish and hopelessness have become the calamitous lot of many Nigerians today. The cry of the masses is reverberating everywhere. From Katsina, Kaduna, Sokoto and Zamfara to Bayelsa, Ebonyi, Lagos, Plateau and Edo states, the stories of suffering and sorrow are the same. Poverty is the new norm for the masses. 

Latest reports published by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) are frightening and disconcerting. Here is the verdict: “About 133 million Nigerians, representing about 63 percent are poor.” This has again confirmed Nigeria’s status as the world’s poverty capital of the world, surpassing India, with a massive population of over 1.4 billion. 

Many Nigerians are sad and angry, with daily struggles to eke out a living. Excruciating lack and its attendant litany of diseases, malnutrition and psychosocial disorders have driven many to unwarranted deaths. Hospital records indicate serious increases in mortalities and morbidities, especially among women and children, which according to experts, are directly or indirectly linked to food deficiencies, lack of access to potable water and good shelter, as well as economic hardship. 

Instead of taking urgent steps to stop this national malaise, the federal and state governments are busy exchanging banter over the cause of the worsening impoverishment. This is shameful and a bad testimony for an administration that promised a better life to the people but dished out bitterness to the nation. As a result, the federal government has continued to receive widespread criticisms over the unbridled woes, due to its ineptitude as well as failure to curb inflation, insecurity, herders/ farmers conflict and corruption. 

Despite the modest performance of Ondo, Abia, Ekiti and Nasarawa, which NBS said recorded lowest numbers of poor persons, most residents are living below internationally acceptable poverty brackets. This is not only absurd but bizarre. Sadly the worst hit are Sokoto, Bayelsa, Jigawa, Kebbi, Gombe and Yobe. 

The level of indigence in Bayelsa, which is an oil-bearing state, is not only shocking but unfortunate. Why such a state should adorn the inglorious list of the poorest, nationally, is a cause for concern and investigation. The question is: Where are all the huge derivative funds for the state going to? The beleaguered residents of this oil-rich state deserve a better life. 

Same for the rest of the country. This suffering requires utmost interventions from government to avoid escalation of violence and crises. Social unrest becomes inevitable when citizens are pushed to incredible lack and want. This is even more horrendous with the opulent lifestyles of political leaders and their cronies. 

The right to life includes access to food, clothing and shelter. Every effort should be made to eradicate poverty, hunger and homelessness across the land. Waiting for hand-outs from foreign nations reflects the total failure of government and crass mismanagement of resources. 

Nevertheless, it is still gratuitous that Norway and a few countries have shown great commitment to the plight of the masses. Recently, Norway renewed its funding cooperation with Food and Agriculture Organization of the Nations (FAO) aimed at helping the most vulnerable populations in Borno, Adamawa, Yobe and Taraba states in northeast Nigeria with a special focus on women-led households. 

 The three-year intervention will benefit 43,990 households (about 307,930 individuals) with at least 45 percent of them being women as direct beneficiaries who will receive agricultural inputs, livestock assets and energy saving stoves. This gesture is certainly commendable and will offer much relief to over 300,000 poverty-ravaged residents in the region, particularly women, girls, children and the aged. It will also reduce the overall numbers of pauperized citizens nationally. 

“The beneficiaries are internally displaced people (IDPs), host communities and returnees of relocated households with special attention paid to women-headed households,” FAO said in a statement. 

Speaking in Abuja at a signing ceremony to kick start the project’s implementation, the Ambassador of the Royal Kingdom of Norway to Nigeria, H.E. Knut Eiliv Lein, said that his country remained committed to supporting the efforts to restore the livelihoods in northeast Nigeria. 

“This project we are signing here today is part of Norway’s larger support to Nigeria in general, including humanitarian efforts specifically targeting those in need in the northeast region. We have partnered with many organizations in addressing a number of issues including health, food security, democracy, gender equality and more,” Ambassador Lein pointed out. 

For his part, the FAO Representative in Nigeria and to the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Fred Kafeero, described it as “another milestone in strengthening the commitment in the fight against poverty, food insecurity and malnutrition in Nigeria.” 

According to Kafeero, “Thanks to this collaboration for years now, the conflict-affected populations of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe (BAY) states have greatly benefited from the agricultural-based livelihoods support that has enabled them to improve their food security as well as build their resilience. The support aims at enhancing resilience to the humanitarian crisis, climate variability and change of vulnerable communities; and building resilient livelihoods in the BAY states against the negative effects of climate change. 

“The project comes a few weeks after the release of the October 2022 food and nutrition analysis (Cadre Harmonisé), which indicates that about 17 million people including IDPs and returnees in 26 states including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) were in crisis or worse level through October 2022. Three million of these are living in Borno, Adamwa and Yobe states. It is noteworthy that since 2017, Norway has issued financial support of more than USD 20 million from the beginning of the crisis, reaching over 1,085,777 conflict-affected people in the northeast region of Nigeria.” 

This is highly commendable. However, poverty is now an existential challenge, requiring urgent measures by governments at all levels. 

*Ojukwu, a journalist, writes via adeze. ojukwu@gmail.com