Nigeria's Food Crisis: $25M Plan to Empower Smallholder Farmers

Nigeria stands on the brink of one of its most severe food crises in decades, with 30.6 million people projected to face acute food and nutrition insecurity between June and August 2025 according to the FAO's Cadre Harmonisé. This deepening hunger emergency stems from multiple interconnected factors including prolonged conflict in the northeast, banditry and displacement in the northwest, climate change-induced erratic rainfall and droughts, and rampant inflation that has pushed basic food commodities beyond the reach of millions. Against this grim backdrop, smallholder cooperatives—which produce more than 70% of Nigeria's food—are emerging as the country's best hope for building food security from the ground up, though they remain critically underfunded and structurally fragile.

The PISA Hearts Humanitarian Foundation is stepping into this vacuum with an ambitious, investor-focused strategy through its Smart-Agro Innovation (SAI) project. This comprehensive initiative aims to reach 10,000 smallholder farmers and vulnerable households by December 2026 by fusing agriculture, technology, and human capital development. The foundation's vision, as shared with Affluenz Magazine, focuses on restoring dignity to rural households while improving food production and creating sustainable pathways out of poverty. Their three-pronged approach centers on financial inclusion through grant and loan systems, capacity building in climate-smart agriculture and cooperative leadership, and establishing market linkages connecting rural farmers to processors and off-takers.

To fully scale this transformative program across three states, PISA estimates it will require $25 million in funding from global donors, development partners, and impact investors. The foundation is actively inviting global organizations to co-sponsor expanded pilots in states including Delta, Nasarawa, Ondo, and Kaduna, offering detailed project blueprints, impact monitoring frameworks, and customizable partnership models. As Nigeria approaches another lean season, the urgency intensifies, but so does the opportunity for investors seeking measurable impact in one of Africa's most pressing development challenges. The foundation emphasizes that this initiative represents not just charity but nation-building, with every dollar invested strengthening entire communities rather than individual households. For more information, visit the Prince Ighosa Djere Foundation website.