Business
‘Urbanisation, Affecting Dietary Diversity Of Nigerians’
The Country Manager of HarvestPlus Nigeria, Mr Paul Ilona said last Saturday that urbanisation was affecting the dietary diversity of Nigerians.
HarvestPlus is part of the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) Programme on Agriculture for Nutrition and Health (A4NH).
Ilona told newsmen in Lagos that urbanisation had not been properly managed.
According to him, fruit trees have been overtaken by ornamental trees, affecting the country’s nutritional density, hence the need for bio-fortification.
Our source reports that bio-fortification is meant to increase the density of vitamins and minerals in the crop through plant-breeding or agronomy practices, so that when consumed regularly, such crops would generate the required vitamins and minerals for the body.
Ilona said: “Urbanisation is seriously affecting the dietary diversity of Nigerians, and there is need for more nutritious foods that will enhance our capacity.
“We have not done enough to add value to diversifying our foods; we have focused too much on urbanisation.
“In the olden days, on the way from school, you could climb any fruit tree; but we do not have that anymore because fruit trees have been replaced by ornamental trees.
“Ornamental trees are good, but will not add value to our nutritional requirements, which is why I say urbanisation is good, but we have not managed it well.”
The country manager said that it had become necessary to add value to the lives of Nigerians, thereby promoting wellness.
Ilona said that the current drive to promote bio-fortified foods was to fight against hidden hunger, which was taking a toll on children and pregnant women.
According to him, the country is over-concentrating on producing carbohydrate foods.
“It is not about how much food you have put into the system; it is the extent to which the food you have eaten meets the desires of the parts of the body.
“According to World Health Organisation (WHO) in 2015, 100 children under age five die; and 6 women of childbearing age die every hour in Nigeria, and this should be a concern to us.
“About 60 per cent of the reasons for their deaths have been attributed to malnutrition,” he said.
The HarvestPlus official described hidden hunger as a situation whereby one has eaten, but the body systems did not derive what they required from such food.
“Nigeria has come of age that we should not be hungry again. It is germane to ensure that Nigerians have access to nutritious food,” he said.
Credit to Nigeria’s private sector rose to N83.26 trillion in June 2026 from N81.04 trillion in May, signifying a positive balance of N2.22 trillion month-on-month.
Year-on-year, the figure represents a nine per cent increase compared with the N76.13 trillion recorded in June 2025. The latest figures come as the CBN continues to balance efforts to control inflation with the need to support economic growth and expand credit to businesses.
The CBN data shows that credit to Nigeria’s private sector increased by approximately 2.74 per cent month-on-month between May and June 2026. Also, the CBN data noted that credit to the government fell slightly to N40.03 trillion from N40.38 trillion. Other assets, net, dropped to N10.76 trillion from N12.63 trillion.
The credit surge signifies sustained growth in lending to businesses and other private-sector borrowers during the month. The rise in private sector credit was recorded alongside an increase in net domestic credit, despite declines in credit to government and other assets.
Further analysis of the report says that compared with June 2025, private sector credit rose by about N7.13 trillion yea-on-year but net domestic credit increased by approximately N1.87 trillion during the month.
The CBN’s relatively tight monetary policy stance notwithstanding, more banks still loaded funds to the private sector within the period. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) held its 306th meeting on July 20 and 21.
The Committee reviewed recent developments in the global and domestic economies, assessed emerging risks to the outlook and considered their implications for monetary policy and retained all rates.
The Committee decided to retain the Monetary Policy Rate at 26.5 per cent; the Standing Facilities Corridor around the MPR at +50/-450 basis points and retain the Cash Reserve Requirement (CRR) for Deposit Money Banks at 45.00 per cent, Merchant Banks at 16.00 per cent, and non-TSA public sector deposits at 75.00 per cent.
The MPC decision means that credit extension in the private sector will likely continue to rise because of rising confidence in the sector and calls by stakeholders for banks to invest in the private scetor instead of government securities.
