Nigeria and other African countries must prepare for a global food crisis occasioned by the Russia-Ukraine war, president of African Development Bank (AfDB), Akinwumi Adesina has advised.
Adesina said the war had worsened the woes of many Africans that resulted from the Coronavirus(COVID-19) pandemic and climate change. He explained that Russia and Ukraine supply 30 per cent of global wheat exports, the price of which has surged by almost 50 per cent globally, reaching identical levels as during the 2008 global food crisis.
The AfDB boss, therefore, urged African leaders to fend off food crisis by rapidly expanding the continent’s food production.
“My basic principle is that Africa should not be begging. We must solve our own challenges ourselves without depending on others,” he said.
According to a statement by the AfDB, Adesina gave the advice while speaking about Africa’s priorities as a guest at the Atlantic Council’s Africa Center on Friday.
The bank chief stressed the need for an increased sense of urgency amid what he described as a once-in-a-century convergence of global challenges for Africa.
He said that Africa, with the lowest gross domestic product (GDP) growth rates, lost as many as 30 million jobs to the COVID-19 pandemic alone.
Adesina added that the effects of the Russia-Ukraine war had spread far beyond Ukraine to other parts of the world, including Africa.
He added that apart from the surging wheat prices, the costs of fertiliser and energy prices had also increased, thereby fuelling inflation.
Adesina warned that the new costs of fertiliser, energy and food baskets, could worsen in Africa in the coming months.
He noted that 90 per cent of Russia’s $4 billion exports to Africa in 2020 were made up of wheat, and 48 per cent of Ukraine’s near $3 billion exports to the continent was made up of wheat and 31 per cent of maize.
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