The sustainability agenda in global food security

Sunny Nwachukwu (Loyal Sigmite), PhD, a pure and applied chemist with an MBA in management, is an Onitsha based industrialist, a fellow of ICCON, and vice president, finance, Onitsha Chamber of Commerce. He can be reached on  +234 803 318 2105 (text only) or schubltd@yahoo.com

The United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 2, as established in 2015 on Food Security, towards sustainable solutions to end hunger by 2030, is an ongoing intergovernmental project. It is a food security policy programme meant to enhance sustainable agriculture in many countries of the world; and aimed at achieving improved nutrition that affords everyone the opportunity to access good quality food and lead a healthy life. This visionary and noble initiative on food security by the United Nations, if efficiently actualized, will not only alleviate the sufferings of the larger global community from hunger and death by averting massive malnutrition challenges among poor and vulnerable families, but it would further eradicate poverty, and substantially stamp out food insecurity.

The four key achievable targets, to “end hunger, achieve food security, improve nutrition, and enhance sustainable agriculture”, appear lately to have been threatened momentarily, and the programme seemingly thwarted by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine since 24th February 2022.

This unfortunate development has turned an eye-opener as it actually put Ukraine as a “global food basket” in the very importantly strategic role it plays in the global food supply chain, (further buttressed by the recent releases of multiple shiploads of grains/wheat being exported to other parts of the world/continents). This Ukraine role is made possible by her massive agribusiness investments in the agricultural sector in the production of grains. This has also proven the significant global economic importance of the grain supply value chain, as well as the position Ukraine occupies on food security.

The shakings from the war alone impacted and manifested in recent rising prices of staple food, baking materials and allied finished foods, which has significantly raised the food price index in this short period. This development has contributed to pointing food inflation rate upwards with fears of imminent world food scarcity, before now that ship-loads of grains are sailing off the Ukrainian sea waters to other parts of the world.

Sustainability, according to the 1987 United Nations Brundtland Commission’s report (“Our Common Future”) means meeting “the needs of the present without compromising the ability of the future generations to meet their own needs.” This needs to be guaranteed through global food security in a 21st Century agribusiness that adapts to applying renewable energy compliant technology in the future mechanized farming.

The world is a global village presently conditioned by technological advancement, through Information, Communication Technology (ICT). This contemporary scheme of running a transnational agribusiness globally, during this ‘4th industrial revolution’ (“Jet-age”) of Artificial Intelligence (AI), and the earth’s multinational policies and agreements, to mitigating global warming as a result of greenhouse gas emissions (GHS); a fall out of the ‘Climate Change’ impact. The green agricultural approach on food production, for sustainable food security of the future, calls for establishment of agribusiness that is innovatively powered by green/renewable energy compliant mechanised technology, which will ensure the aspired global food security for all, encompassing sustainability in man’s earthly existence.

In life, food is one of the three basic needs of man (that complements shelter and clothing). Humans are urged to actively participate in food production, by fitting into all levels of the agricultural sector in every economy, at any suitable point on the entire global food production value chain (whether on commercial basis or for subsistence purposes). Food sufficiency and healthy food for all, in this present age, is vital and of utmost importance for man’s success and to achieve the expected standard of living and quality lifestyle in the 21st Century social settings.

The world’s population is constantly increasing, with such a demographic change in size and the attendant population explosion that demands an adequate responsive adjustment. A responsive adjustment that will address the issue of food supplies, by improving agricultural output capacity for a commensurate global food sufficiency at all times (that is, the much talked about, food sustainability).

Nigeria’s agricultural sector (for instance), needs to double the efforts being put in the agro-based food productions, as off takers for the crops and livestock farmers. An arrangement that empowers the farmers to be sustainably engaged in continuous agricultural farming, without any break or hiccups in operations, is needed. This strategy can basically be improved upon and applied in all state ministries of agriculture by focusing and massively investing on genetically modified hybrid species of cash crops (to be readily made available and provided at a fee/strictly on business basis; as a support and the only encouragement the government may offer by readily making the species available for purchase by farmers whenever they demand supplies of such nurseries). That alone (for subsistence purposes at least, for the smallholder farmers), assures easy access to food availability, and for steady supplies of the harvested produce by big time agribusiness investors to everyone, across all the social rungs in the economy. The large available arable land in the country, and the very conducive weather for farming, all year round, stand as another big plus that is attractive for full scale investment in agribusiness by private investors within the economy.