Nasarawa Governor Faults UN Hunger Data On Northern Nigeria

Nasarawa State Governor, Abdullahi Sule, has questioned the reliability of a recent United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) assessment warning of escalating hunger across northern Nigeria.

In its November 2025 update, the WFP projected that up to 35 million people in northern Nigeria may face severe food insecurity by 2026, the highest level recorded since the agency began monitoring the region.

However, speaking on Arise TV’s Prime Time show, Governor Sule said he had not seen the report but stressed that many international assessments often rely on outdated or incomplete information.

“Some of these reports are not actually as accurate as they seem to be,” Sule said.

He recounted an incident in South Africa where a World Bank representative presented a report based on 2018 data, despite the significant passage of time.

“I told him, ‘Sir, we are years ahead. You can’t be giving us a 2018 report today.’ You come across those kinds of reports,” he said.

Sule argued that the situation in Nasarawa State does not align with the WFP’s broader findings about worsening hunger in the North.

According to him, the state has witnessed a drastic reduction in food prices, improved salary payments, and a ramp-up in agricultural production.

He noted that Nasarawa currently cultivates 3,300 hectares of rice, now being harvested under the state-owned brand.

“Our rice farms cover 3,300 hectares, and we’ve started harvesting. The rice will come out under the Nasarawa Rice brand, Nasku, and we will sell at very reasonable prices. Generally, food prices have reduced in Nasarawa State,” he said.

Sule insisted that if hunger levels are rising, the figures must represent an “average” for the entire region, not a uniform increase across all northern states.

“I don’t think there is an increase in Nasarawa State,” he maintained.

The governor acknowledged that the WFP report may accurately reflect realities in other parts of the North but warned against generalising its conclusions.