Speech: VP Osinbajo’s Address at the Inauguration of The National Council on Nutrition in Abuja

This was established by the Federal Executive Council in May 2007, following the convening of the first Presidential Stakeholders’ Forum on the Child Nutrition Situation in Nigeria, on 22nd February 2007 – is the highest decision-making body on food and nutrition in Nigeria, and is expected to spearhead and oversee our interventions in addressing Nigeria’s nutritional challenges.

The Council has a robust roadmap to work with – the National Food and Nutrition Policy, adopted in April 2016 by a broad coalition of stakeholders, comprising the Federal and State Governments, civil society and international development partners.

The emergence of that Policy is further demonstration of the seriousness with which the Buhari administration takes the issue of improving the nutritional status of all Nigerians, especially the most vulnerable in our midst: infants and children, pregnant women, the elderly, the poor.

That policy, if fully implemented, will ensure significant improvements in several specific national indices, including the reduction of stunting in under-5 children, reduction of wasting in children, reduction of anaemia in pregnant women, reduction in adult obesity rates, and an increase in the rates of exclusive breastfeeding.

More than any other government in Nigeria’s history, this administration has demonstrated its seriousness about catering to the needs of the most vulnerable of our population.

One of the primary manifestations of this commitment to the vulnerable is our Social Investment Programme, comprising a School Feeding Programme for public primary schools, a Micro-credit scheme for small business people, a Conditional Cash Transfer scheme, and a Jobs programme for unemployed graduates.

The School Feeding Programme, which directly seeks to improve the nutrition of primary school children, is now active in 19 States of the country, providing one meal a day to 5million. Our target is 5.5million children before the end of the year. At the beginning of December, we intend to carry out a mass deworming exercise on the back of the School Feeding Programme.

Our Agriculture reform agenda is focusing on achieving self-sufficiency within the shortest possible time. In the Northeast, where Boko Haram’s violence disrupted the farming cycle for years, we are now seeing a remarkable improvement in security, allowing the people to return to their farms, and grow their food. In our healthcare agenda, we are revitalizing our primary health care system, with nutrition at the very heart of it, and promoting optimum breastfeeding and quality of complementary foods.

We are also collaborating with the private sector to ensure Nigerians have year round access to adequately fortified and nutritious foods, and working with both national and International partners to raise awareness and deepen understanding on this issue.

Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, it is clear that there is a strong connection between nutrition and economic growth. If we invest in improved nutrition for our people we will see the results not only in improved emotional and psychological satisfaction in our citizens, but also in reduced healthcare costs and increased economic productivity.

We must therefore ensure that we mobilize the resources needed to make these needed investments. The Federal Government has been progressively increasing budgetary allocations to nutrition activities.

But the Government cannot fund this by itself. The private sector, civil society, and international community must all play a key role in helping mobilize financial and logistical resources, and in helping ensure transparency and accountability in the deployment of these resources. Indeed, every resource must be made to count towards the attainment of our goals and ambitions. There is no room for waste.

The National Council on Nutrition has its work cut out, in implementation, collaboration, and communication. We bear the burden of very high expectations – Nigeria must make speedy and visible progress in its fight against hunger, malnutrition and other nutritional challenges. As part of this we must ensure that the new National Food and Nutrition Policy is quickly domesticated at State level in every State of the Federation and the FCT.

Let me reiterate that the work of this Council is an important one. Our success or failure will make a huge difference in how quickly Nigeria is able to achieve not only the Sustainable Development Goals, but also our Economic Recovery and Growth Plan.

I would also like to express our gratitude to all our partners and stakeholders, local and international, who have demonstrated again and again that they are fully with us on this journey.

In closing, let me express my congratulations to all Council members. This is a great opportunity to serve our nation and its people.

It is now my honour and privilege to formally inaugurate the National Council on Nutrition today. I wish you a successful tenure.

Thank you and God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Laolu Akande
SSA, Media and Publicity
Office of the Vice President
November 22, 2017

Press Release: School Feeding Program Reaches 17 States

Over 4m school pupils now eating one free meal a day.

25,771 schools now benefitting from the programme.

Also, N5,000 monthly Conditional Cash Transfer now funded in 16 states for 115,000 Nigerians.

Three more states have been added to the National Home Grown School Feeding Programme, with an additional one million children now benefitting from it. They are Cross River, Akwa Ibom and Niger states.

This brings to 17 the number of states currently participating in the School Feeding Programme, a crucial part of President Muhammadu Buhari administration’s Social Investment Programmes, SIP, aimed at tackling poverty and hunger, as well as creating jobs for Nigerians.

The other 14 states already on the programme are Anambra, Enugu, Oyo, Osun, Ogun, Ebonyi, Zamfara, Delta, Abia, Benue, Plateau, Bauchi, Taraba and Kaduna.

So far, in Cross River state, 117,750 children in 973 schools are being fed under the programme, while in Akwa Ibom, there are 171,732 children in 1,101 schools being fed. Niger State has a total of 710,880 being fed in 2,411 schools in the state.

In total, 4,773,064 schoolchildren in 25,771 schools in 17 states are currently benefitting from the school feeding programme.

This is a notable increase from the previous total of 2,918,842 schoolchildren from 19,881 schools in 14 states that had benefitted from the programme.

About 34,869 direct jobs have since been created from the School Feeding Programme across the participating states. In Cross River state, for example, 1,384 cooks have been engaged, while 1,309 cooks are currently engaged in Akwa Ibom State, and 5,924 cooks are engaged under the programme in Niger State.

Meanwhile, few days after the United Nations designated 17th October as the International Day for Eradication of Poverty, thousands of Nigerians identified poorest and most vulnerable have received the monthly Conditional Cash Transfer in Plateau and Cross River states.

About 115,000 beneficiaries are now being funded with the monthly N5,000 stipend in 16 states; including Borno, Cross River, Niger, Kwara, Ekiti, Kogi, Oyo, Osun, Plateau, Bauchi, Anambra, Jigawa, Taraba and Adamawa.

There are reported disbursement hitches in Benue and Anambra states, and they are being addressed. This mainly has to do with non-opening of bank accounts and enrolling beneficiaries. It is expected that by the end of next month the hitches would have been completely resolved and the beneficiaries in position to receive the cash transfers in those states.

The CCT scheme directly supports those within the lowest poverty bracket by improving nutrition, increasing household consumption and supporting the development of human capital through cash benefits to various categories of the poorest and most vulnerable.

The School Feeding Programme and Conditional Cash Transfer schemes are two of the Buhari administration’s N500 billion Social Investment Programmes, SIPs, aimed at improving the lives of ordinary Nigerians nationwide through welfare and empowerment programmes.

Laolu Akande
Senior Special Assistant on Media & Publicity to the President
Office of the Vice President
23th October, 2017