News
Hunger Hits Over 27 Million People as West Africa Faces it’s Worst Food Crises
By Bashir Hassan Abubakar
West Africa is hit by its worst food crisis in a decade, with 27 million people going hungry. This number could rise to 38 million this June – a new historic level and already an increase by more than a third over last year- unless urgent action is taken.
This alert was contained in a press statement issued by eleven international organizations in response to new analyses of the March 2022 Cadre Harmonisé (CH), ahead of the virtual conference on the food and nutrition crisis in the Sahel and Lake Chad organized by the European Union and the Sahel and West Africa Club.
Over the past decade, far from abating, food crises have been increasing across the West African region, including in Burkina Faso, Niger, Chad, Mali, and Nigeria. Between 2015 and 2022, the number of people in need of emergency food assistance nearly quadrupled, from 7 to 27 million.
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“Cereal production in some parts of the Sahel has dropped by about a third compared to last year. Family food supplies are running out. Drought, floods, conflict, and the economic impacts of COVID-19 have forced millions of people off their land, pushing them to the brink” says Assalama Dawalack Sidi, Oxfam’s regional director for West and Central Africa
“The situation is forcing hundreds of thousands of people to move to different communities and to live with host families who are already living in difficult conditions themselves. There is not enough food, let alone food that is nutritious enough for children. We must help them urgently because their health, their future and even their lives are at risk,” said Philippe Adapoe, Save the Children’s director for West and Central Africa.
Malnutrition is steadily increasing in the Sahel. The United Nations estimated that 6.3 million children aged 6-59 months will be acutely malnourished this year – including more than 1.4 million children in the severe acute malnutrition phase – compared to 4.9 million acutely malnourished children in 2021.
“I had almost no milk left so I gave my baby other food. He often refused to take it and lost weight. In addition he had diarrhea, which worsened his condition,” said Safiatou, a mother who had to flee her village because of the violence in Burkina Faso.
In addition to conflict and insecurity, pockets of drought and poor rainfall distribution have reduced communities’ food sources, especially in the Central Sahel. To make up for the gap, many families are selling their assets, jeopardizing their productive capacity and the future of their children. Young girls may be forced into early marriage and other forms of gender-based violence may increase as food becomes scarcer.
“The rains were scarce. There is no more food. With the lack of grazing, the sheep are getting thinner and this forces us to sell them at a loss. I used to have twelve sheep, but now I only have one left”, explains Ramata Sanfo, a herder from Burkina Faso. “I would like to have my cattle back so that I have enough money and my children can go back to school.”
Food prices have increased by 20-30 percent over the past five years in West Africa. While food reserves are dwindling in the Sahel, the crisis in Ukraine is making the situation dangerously worse. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, food prices could rise by another 20 percent worldwide, an unbearable increase for already fragile populations. In addition, the crisis is likely to cause a significant decrease in wheat availability for six West African countries that import at least 30 percent, and in some cases more than 50 percent, of their wheat from Russia and Ukraine.
Another likely effect of the crisis in Europe is a sharp drop in international aid to Africa. Many donors have already indicated that they may make cuts in their funding to Africa. For example, Denmark has announced that it will postpone part of its bilateral development assistance to Burkina Faso (50 per cent in 2022) and to Mali (40 percent in 2022) rather than fund the reception of people who have fled their homes in Ukraine with new money.
“There should be no competition between humanitarian crises,” says Mamadou Diop, regional representative of Action Against Hunger. “The Sahel crisis is one of the worst humanitarian crises on a global scale and, at the same time, one of the least funded. We fear that by redirecting humanitarian budgets to the Ukrainian crisis, we risk dangerously aggravating one crisis to respond to another.”
Humanitarian organizations are urging governments and donors not to repeat the failures of 2021, when only 48 percent of the humanitarian response plan in West Africa was funded. They must immediately close the $4 billion funding gap in the UN appeal for West Africa to save lives and ensure that these funds support age-, gender-, and disability-sensitive interventions. No one should be left behind.
“The conference on the Sahel crisis scheduled for tomorrow is a unique opportunity to mobilize the necessary emergency food and nutrition assistance and to prove that the lives of people in Africa are not worth less than those in Europe,” says Assalama Dawalack Sidi.
Our correspondent reports that the eleven international organizations participating in this press release are Oxfam, Action Against Hunger, Save the Children, CARE International, International Rescue Committee (IRC), Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), The Alliance for International Medical Action (ALIMA), Tearfund, World Vision (WV), Handicap International – Humanité & Inclusion and Mercy Corps.”
News
Gombe AGILE Project Begins Life Skills Training to Empower Adolescent Girls
The Gombe State AGILE (Adolescent Girls Initiative for Learning and Empowerment) Project has officially commenced its Training of Trainers under the Life Skills Component, marking a significant step toward the effective implementation of the initiative aimed at empowering young girls across the state.
The five-day training, organized by the Guidance and Counselling Development Association in partnership with the Gombe State AGILE Project, kicked off at the Federal College of Education (Technical), Gombe with the participation of key stakeholders and representatives from various institutions.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, the Gombe State AGILE Project Coordinator, Dr. Amina Haruna Abdul, represented by the **Deputy Project Coordinator, Aishatu Sambo, reaffirmed the project’s commitment to achieving its objectives. She emphasized that life skills development is a critical aspect of the AGILE initiative, stressing the importance of laying a solid foundation for its successful and systematic execution.
“Life skills are essential for shaping the future of adolescent girls in Gombe State. We are committed to ensuring the proper implementation of this component in line with the overall goals of AGILE,” said Dr. Amina.
Also speaking at the event, the **World Bank National Team Lead, Mrs. Dorcas Kadangs Yakubu , praised the state’s effort and pace in establishing a strong foundation for the project. She urged the facilitators and organizers to strictly adhere to the World Bank’s project objectives and operational guidelines, warning against any deviations, as the Bank maintains a zero-tolerance policy on project mismanagement.
The State Component Lead on Life Skills, Walida Maryam Muhammad, highlighted the purpose of the training, noting that it was designed to equip master trainers with basic and practical knowledge on life skills. The trained participants will, in turn, train teachers in public schools across the state to cascade the knowledge to adolescent girls.
Participants in the training were drawn from tertiary institutions, faith-based organizations, and guidance and counseling bodies across Gombe State.
Throughout the training sessions, presentations were delivered on critical areas such as Life Skills Development, Gender-Based Violence (GBV), and Safe Space Demonstrations, which are essential components of the life skills curriculum.
The training is expected to significantly enhance the capacity of educators and mentors to support and empower adolescent girls in Gombe State through quality life skills education.
News
Governor Yusuf Pays Over 3 Billion for Secondary School Students to Sit for NECO, NABTEB, NBAIS
The Governor of Kano State, Alhaji Abba Kabir Yusuf, has expended over 3 billion naira for 141,175 (one hundred and forty-one thousand, one hundred and seventy-five) Kano students who passed the 2024 qualifying examinations to sit for this year’s WAEC, NECO, NABTEB, and NBAIS (2025).
In a statement issued by the Governor’s Special Adviser on Information, Ibrahim Adam, it was noted that the Commissioner for Education, Ali Haruna Makoda, announced to newsmen in Kano that the State Ministry of Education had released the results of the qualifying examinations for secondary school students in Kano.
These students are studying under the Kano State Teachers Service Board and the Science and Technical Schools Board, where 75 percent of them qualified to write the senior school certificate examinations of WAEC, NABTEB, NECO, and NBAIS (for Arabic students).
Ali Haruna Makoda stated that the students eligible for payment by the Kano State Government under Alhaji Abba Kabir Yusuf are those who scored five credits and above.
The Commissioner maintained that all secondary school principals and directors should notify their students of their results so that the state government can effect the payment.
The 2025 qualifying exams for WAEC, NECO, and NABTEB will enable the students to sit for their 2025 examinations required for admission into tertiary education.
Ibrahim Adam, the Special Adviser to Governor Yusuf on Information, said that since the inception of the administration in May 2023, it has settled registration fees for Kano indigent students for WAEC, NECO, NABTEB, and NBAIS.
The Special Adviser pointed out that apart from settling the fees, Governor Yusuf’s administration has also paid huge outstanding debts for WAEC, NECO, and NABTEB left behind by former Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje’s administration.
He also said it is part of Governor Yusuf’s declaration of a state of emergency on education and an effort to mitigate the high number of out-of-school children that have bedeviled the state.
News
NWDC Cancels Foreign Scholarship Scheme, Backs FG’s Local Education Policy
The North West Development Commission (NWDC) has announced the cancellation of its foreign scholarship application process in response to a new policy directive from the Federal Government prioritizing local education.
In a statement issued by the NWDC management on Thursday, May 8, 2025, the commission confirmed that the cancellation is in line with a recent federal directive urging public institutions to focus on strengthening educational capacity within Nigeria.
“This decision follows the Federal Government’s announcement on May 7, 2025,” the statement read. “We are fully committed to aligning our programs and initiatives with national priorities, especially those aimed at promoting local content and indigenous capacity building.”
The Federal Government’s directive was conveyed through a press statement signed by Mrs. Boriowo Folasade, Director of Press and Public Relations at the Federal Ministry of Education. The statement emphasized the need to redirect resources towards improving domestic institutions and ensuring more Nigerians have access to quality education at home.
“The policy is designed to reduce reliance on foreign academic systems and bolster Nigeria’s educational sector by investing in local universities and training institutions,” Mrs. Folasade said in the official release.
The NWDC reiterated its support for this policy, noting that it will explore new avenues to support educational and human capital development within the region. “The commission will provide updates on further opportunities and programs in due course,” the NWDC statement concluded.
The move is expected to impact hundreds of applicants who had hoped to pursue studies abroad under the commission’s sponsorship but may now need to consider domestic options supported by the commission in future initiatives.
Gombe AGILE Project Begins Life Skills Training to Empower Adolescent Girls
Governor Yusuf Pays Over 3 Billion for Secondary School Students to Sit for NECO, NABTEB, NBAIS
NWDC Cancels Foreign Scholarship Scheme, Backs FG’s Local Education Policy
Friday Sermon: Hajj, One Of The Pillars Of Islam
Erosion Control :Governor Yusuf Disburses Over N600 Million Compensation
Gombe AGILE Project Begins Life Skills Training to Empower Adolescent Girls
Governor Yusuf Pays Over 3 Billion for Secondary School Students to Sit for NECO, NABTEB, NBAIS
NWDC Cancels Foreign Scholarship Scheme, Backs FG’s Local Education Policy
Friday Sermon: Hajj, One Of The Pillars Of Islam
Erosion Control :Governor Yusuf Disburses Over N600 Million Compensation
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