1

Stakeholders meet in IITA to draw roadmap to achieve Zero Hunger in Nigeria

Former Pres. Obasanjo convenes meeting

The inaugural meeting of the Nigeria Zero Hunger Strategic Review was held in IITA Headquarters in Ibadan on 29 April. Organized by the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library (OOPL) and IITA, this stakeholder meeting aimed to draw a roadmap to end hunger in Nigeria by 2030.

The meeting received support from the World Food Program (WFP), and was organized in the context of the Sustainable Development Goals (SGDs) that seek to end hunger by 2030.

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo, the meeting convener, said the task of attaining the SDGs could not be left for the government alone, or for civil society or the private sector.

“It is going to take the collective effort of each and every citizen of this nation and our partners. It will require our collective change of mindset to at first identify the opportunities that abound,” he said.

The former president said that Nigeria’s continued importation of food was unacceptable and requested that efforts be made to address this.

The WFP Representative, Stanlake Samkange, explained that the SDGs would be driven by the countries themselves. and the WFP/UN‘s role is to support countries in achieving these goals.

“WFP’s role is to be a catalyst in a country–owned process,” he added.

IITA Director General Nteranya Sanginga, said that IITA would provide the necessary support for Nigeria to achieve its target within the framework of the Zero Hunger initiative.

Dr Chiji Ojukwu, a Director with the African Development Bank (AfDB), expressed the commitment of the Bank to initiatives that would help Africa to feed itself. He said that the Bank was ready to work with Nigerian authorities in the Nigeria Zero Hunger process, through the commodity value-chain to end hunger and poverty.

About 50 key participants from government, ministries, development organizations, international entities, and the public and private sectors attended the strategic meeting.