Agriculture and Food Security in Northeast Nigeria: Challenges, Prospects, and Policy Implications
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.60787/ijrti.vol3no1.75Keywords:
Agriculture, Food Security, Northeast Nigeria, Agricultural Productivity, Insecurity, Rural LivelihoodsAbstract
Agriculture is often regarded as one of Nigeria's most important food security industries, particularly in the northeast. However, the region has faced significant challenges in recent years, impacting both agricultural production and food security. This article examines the relationship between agriculture and food security in Northeast Nigeria, focusing on the key factors that influence agricultural productivity and its impact on regional food security. The study utilises a qualitative and analytical approach, relying on secondary material such as government records, scholarly publications, and reports from international organisations. It investigates how insecurity, climate change, environmental degradation, farmer and farmland displacement, inadequate infrastructure, and limited access to modern agricultural inputs have all harmed farming activities and food production in the region. The ongoing insurgency has impacted agricultural practices, particularly in the Northeast, by diminishing crop fields, destroying rural livelihoods, and displacing agricultural workers. According to the findings, low agricultural output is one of the causes contributing to increased food insecurity, malnutrition, and poverty among the region's rural families. Despite several government and humanitarian efforts to boost agricultural production and food security, considerable obstacles remain. The report highlights the importance of sustainable farming practices, greater security, modern farming methods, and rural infrastructure development in Northeast Nigeria for improving food production and long-term food security. According to the research, agriculture must be promoted in order to solve food insecurity and improve regional socioeconomic stability.Downloads
References
World Bank. (2020). *Agriculture and food security in Nigeria*. Washington, DC: World Bank.
World Food Programme (WFP). (2023). *Nigeria food security analysis*. Rome: WFP.
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). (2022). *Climate change impacts, adaptation and vulnerability*. Geneva: IPCC.
World Food Programme (WFP). (2020). *Food security analysis in Northeast Nigeria*. Rome: WFP.
Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). (2017). *The impact of conflict on agriculture and food security in Nigeria*. Rome: FAO.
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). (2021). *Assessing the impact of conflict on development in Northeast Nigeria*. Abuja: UNDP.
International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). (2019). *Global food policy report*. Washington, DC: IFPRI.
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). (2022). *Climate change impacts, adaptation and vulnerability*. Geneva: IPCC.
Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). (2021). *The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World*. Rome: FAO.
World Food Programme (WFP). (2022). *Nigeria emergency food security assessment*. Rome: WFP.
United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). (2021). *Nutrition situation in Northeast Nigeria*. New York: UNICEF.
Dunn, G. (2018). The impact of the Boko Haram insurgency in Northeast Nigeria on childhood wasting: A double difference study. *Conflict and Health*, 12. [https://doi.org/10.1186/s13031-018-0136-2](https://doi.org/10.1186/s13031-018-0136-2)
Kah, H. (2017). Boko Haram is losing, but so is food production: Conflict and food insecurity in Nigeria and Cameroon. *Africa Development*, 42, 177–196.
*The Guardian Nigeria*. (2026, February 14). *Northeast: How declining produce prices, high cost of inputs undermine dry season farming.*
Hufstader, C. (2024, April 18). *How will climate change affect agriculture?*
Akinmoladun, O. I. & Oladipo, O. O. (2020). *Agriculture and economic growth in Nigeria.*
World Bank. (2021). *World Development Indicators: Nigeria.*
National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). (2020). *Nigerian Gross Domestic Product Report*. Abuja: NBS.
Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). (2019). *Nigeria at a glance*. Rome: FAO.
Sulaimon, A. (2021). *Rain-fed agriculture and climate vulnerability in Northern Nigeria.*
Morton, J. F. (2007). The impact of climate change on smallholder and subsistence agriculture. *Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences*, 104(50), 19680–19685.
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). (2014). *Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability*. Cambridge University Press.
Akinbobola, A., et al. (2018). *Climate variability and temperature trends in Nigeria.*
Niang, I., et al. (2014). Africa. In *IPCC Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability.*
Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET). (2020). *Annual Climate Review Bulletin*. Abuja: NIMET.
Boko, M., Niang, I., Nyong, A., Vogel, C., Githeko, A., Medany, M., Osman-Elasha, B., Tabo, R. & Yanda, P. (2007). Africa. In M. L. Parry, O. F. Canziani, J. P. Palutikof, P. J. van der Linden & C. E. Hanson (Eds.), *Climate Change 2007: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability* (pp. 433–467). Cambridge University Press.
Nin-Pratt, A., Ehui, S. & Benin, S. (2007). *Assessing the impact of climate change on livestock in Africa*. IFPRI Discussion Paper.
Thornton, P. K., van de Steeg, J., Notenbaert, A. & Herrero, M. (2009). The impacts of climate change on livestock and livestock systems in developing countries: A review of what we know and what we need to know. *Agricultural Systems*, 101(3), 113–127.
Adams, R. M., Hurd, B. H., Lenhart, S. & Leary, N. (1999). Effects of global climate change on agriculture: An interpretative review. *Climate Research*, 11, 19–30.
Nardone, A., Ronchi, B., Lacetera, N., Ranieri, M. S. & Bernabucci, U. (2010). Effects of climate changes on animal production and sustainability of livestock systems. *Livestock Science*, 130(1–3), 57–69. [https://doi.org/10.1016/j.livsci.2010.02.011](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.livsci.2010.02.011)
Mendelsohn, R. & Dinar, A. (2009). *Climate change and agriculture: An economic analysis of global impacts, adaptation and distributional effects*. Edward Elgar Publishing.
Adejumo, S. A. (2004). *Impact of climate variability and climate change on crop yield in Nigeria.*
Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET). (2015). *Annual Climate Review Bulletin*. Abuja: NIMET.
Obioha, E. E. (2008). Climate change, population drift and violent conflict over land resources in northeastern Nigeria. *Journal of Human Ecology*, 23(4), 311–324.
Mortimore, M. (2010). Adapting to drought in the Sahel: Lessons for climate change. *Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Climate Change*, 1(1), 134–143.
Tacoli, C. (2009). Crisis or adaptation? Migration and climate change in a context of high mobility. *Environment and Urbanization*, 21(2), 513–525.
United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat). (2016). *World Cities Report 2016: Urbanization and Development – Emerging Futures*. Nairobi: UN-Habitat.
Adelphi. (2018). *Climate change, migration and conflict in Nigeria*. Berlin: Adelphi Research.
International Crisis Group. (2017). *Herders against Farmers: Nigeria’s Expanding Deadly Conflict*. Africa Report No. 252.
Olaniyi, O. A., et al. (2013). *Climate change and herder–farmer conflicts in Nigeria’s Middle Belt*. (Ensure full bibliographic details based on your source).
Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). (2006). *Food security policy brief*. Rome: FAO.
Barrett, C. B. (2010). Measuring food insecurity. *Science*, 327(5967), 825–828.
Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) & World Food Programme (WFP). (2013). *The state of food insecurity in the world 2013: The multiple dimensions of food security*. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
