Food

The Kenyan government has disclosed that about 2.6 millon citizens face starvation in 23 arid and semi-arid locations in the country.

The government made this disclosure through it spokesperson,Mr. Cyrus Oguna.

The government said that of the number  623,000 were children  while 69,000 were  pregnant and lactating mothers, who were at risk of malnutrition as drought ravages the regions.

It noted that Turkana was the worst affected, with 250,000 children aged under five in Turkana North, Turkana South and Laisamis sub-counties experiencing acute malnutrition,while Another 200,000 in Turkana West and Turkana Central, Baringo, Tana River, Samburu and Moyale were  faced critical malnutrition.

“Eight out of the 23 counties are severely affected by drought and require urgent enhanced relief food assistance. They include Garissa, Mandera, Wajir, Marsabit, Tharaka-Nithi, Isiolo, Embu and Kitui,” the government spokes person stated.

Nigerians have expressed disappointment over the failure of the Federal Government to check the soaring prices of food stuff in markets across the country.

They lament that the high cost of the food items such as rice, tomatoes, pasta among others have made most citizens to opt for items like ‘’garri’’ in particular, coco yam and maize among others.

Millions of Nigerians are now of the belief that the President Muhammadu Buhari led administration in the country is nonchalant and insensitive to the hunger and poverty situation in millions of homes in Nigeria, even though most political office holders and government officials are currently benefiting from the closure of the country’s borders in a sizable number of states.

They passionately appeal to the powers that be to reverse the present order of things in the markets, as a step towards rescuing millions of Nigerians living in hunger and poverty.

The debate among Nigerians in the present time is on the promise made by President Muhammadu Buhari to cater for the poor and downtrodden in the country, as he positions to make a difference in his second term.

The President’s promise is coming on the heels of his directive to the Central Bank of Nigeria(CBN) to stop the issuance of foreign exchange to those who import foodstuff.

Nigerians, however, insist that since the country is yet to attain food sufficiency, while hunger and poverty still remain in millions of homes, the President’s directive is an indication that the present administration does not have workable plans to rescue majority of Nigerians from the vicious cycle of poverty.

In this interview, the Founder, Spiritual Head and Grand Imam of Shafaudeen-in-Islam worldwide, Prof. Sabitu Olagoke asserts that the importation of edibles and related products can only be regulated and controlled when when there is food sufficiency in the land. Excerpts :

What do you think is the best way to ensure food sufficiency in Nigeria ?

In the areas of the fundamental needs of man, that is food, shelter and clothing, Science and Technology have offered a great mass of opportunity for mass production of the raw materials, in terms of mechanized farming and processing units for varieties of products to cater for Nigeria’s food sufficiency.

Unfortunately for Nigeria, the endemic culture of corruption will fail again to succeed, with particular reference to the agro-allied and textile industries. This is why Nigeria depends solely on the importation of some raw materials as well as most finished products.

Nigerians are put in the dark by successive governments till date, on the purpose for the establishment of universities of agriculture, research institutes, Polytechnics as well as universities of Science and Technology.

Seychelles Sustainable Tourism Foundation(SSTF) in continuation of its "Don't Waste, Eat!" food waste reduction programme' has distributed over 200 kilogrammes of food to over 35 families.

The "Don't Waste Eat!" food waste reduction programme kicked off in July 2018 and is facilitated by  the Seychelles Sustainable Tourism Foundation, (SSTF) in collboration with Betterfly Tourism --a software publisher for tourism profession.

The programme serves to equip staff with necessary skills to measure and monitor food waste, provide hotels with a platform that facilitates monitoring of cost savings and food waste reduction.

According to the SSTF Project Officer, Rosetta Alcindor. the Foundation is committeed to putting smiles on the faces of families.

"There is more to a food donation than what we usually think. We are not only providing food for the community and diverting good food from the landfill, but we are also putting smiles on families' faces.''

"Though a lot of the products are buffet leftovers or had reached their best before date, they are still good for consumption.''

"As the food is donated, it reduces the demand for importation of food products on the market as families now consume what they were donated, hence avoiding CO2 emissions along the supply chain," Alcindor stated.

Families received vegetables, fruits and other food products which included pastries, cakes and bread. The donations were made by SPAR supermarket and a number of hotels which are members of the Seychelles Hospitality and Tourism Association such as Alphonse Island Lodge, Constance Ephelia, Bravo Restaurant, H Resort and Kempinski Seychelles Resort.