Address Food-Induced Diseases, Reps Ask Federal Govt

The House of Representatives has urged the Federal Government, through the relevant agencies, to enhance the implementation of food safety measures to address the rising cases of food-induced diseases in the country.

The resolution followed the adoption of a motion of urgent public importance moved by Hon. Billy Osawaru(APC, Edo) at plenary yesterday.

Moving the motion, Osawaru referenced a report by the World Health Organisation, which showed that unsafe food causes about 866 million illnesses and 1.5 million deaths globally each year, with Africa recording the highest number.

He acknowledged the federal government’s efforts under Sustainable Development Goals 3 (SDG 3) and 12 to ensure healthy lives and sustainable food production, as well as NAFDAC’s mandate under Cap N1 LFN 2004 to regulate food safety, with no exception to the Standard Organisation of Nigeria’s mandate.

“Commendable is Nigeria’s 2025 State Party Annual Report score of Level 3, which is a testament that Nigeria surpassed the WHO benchmark and became one of the leading nations in Sub-Saharan Africa with functional systems for detecting, reporting, and responding to foodborne disease outbreaks,” the lawmaker said.

Osawaru noted that chemical hazards, poor hygiene among food handlers, open defecation, lack of good potable water, especially in rural areas, weak regulatory enforcement and inadequate infrastructure in the market and abattoirs are the major factors leading to loss of tens of thousands of healthy lives owing to their exposure to affected foods and perhaps getting contaminated.

He expressed concern that despite the Federal Government’s commitment to curb the issue of foodborne disease, “Nigeria still accounts for high number of approximately 50m foodborne diseases and more than 53,000 deaths caused by unsafe food yearly, leading to the aggregate number of 4.26m healthy life lost annually to ill health, disability and premature death due to foodborne disease, with over 80 per cent of these predominately children below the age of five.”

The lawmaker noted that, due to the lack of professionalism in food preparation/production in Nigeria, the country continues to lose an estimated $3.6bn annually to foodborne illnesses through lost productivity, medical expenses, and trade restrictions, especially across national borders.

Osawaru further stated that the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention report on the recurring incidence of cholera outbreaks across Nigeria has, as always, been attributed to contaminated food and water sources, underscoring the underlying vulnerabilities in the country’s sanitation and infrastructure.

Adopting the motion, the House urged the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, NAFDAC, SON, and NCDC to enhance nationwide surveillance, inspection, and certification across the entire food production value chain.

It also mandated the House Committee on Healthcare, Food Safety and Nutrition to liaise with NAFDAC, NCDC, SON, and other relevant stakeholders to ensure that the funds required for the procurement of food testing equipment are captured in the subsequent supplementary budget. In contrast, training, retraining and certification of food handlers are prioritised, and legislative gaps are identified and proposed for legislative amendment.

The House also urged the Federal Ministries of Health and Water Resources to urgently intensify investment in clean and potable water, as well as to provide adequate sanitation infrastructure to minimise the havoc caused by contaminated water on food.