Population Growth In Nigeria

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One of the measures used to judge the welfare of a populace is food security; it is no wonder then that food security is an issue in the world both in developing and developed countries. International and national organizational bodies around the world have been stressing on the need to pay attention to this issue for years now, especially to developing countries. As a result of the rapid growing population around the world it is of paramount importance that food production increases to sustain humanity.

Population in the world today has risen significantly with a reduction of mortality rates and growing life expectancy, where people live longer and better. Between 1800 and 2010 the world population increased approximately seven fold (from …show more content…

With the notion that shows that population growth affects food production, food production cannot affect population growth. Reverend T.R Malthus in an essay on the principle of population (1798) proposed the principle that human population if unchecked grows exponentially while food production grows at an arithmetic rate. In Nigeria this principle is evident as population growth is growing at an exponential progression and food production at an arithmetic progression, but importation has met up in past years for the food shortage. But with exchange rate increase and dwindling oil prices the Nigerian government will soon be incompetent to cater for food importation, and this is when the Malthusian catastrophe comes into play. Studies by renowned Nigerian researchers show that the country faces a looming food security crisis, with a growing population that is increasingly dependent on imported food (Chinedum Nwajiuba, 2011), inflationary trends have affected food supply, with the continuous rise in consumer price index for food in both rural and urban centers (Uma, K.E et al, 2014). Food price index also rose on average of 9% in 2006 compared to 2007 this increase in value is about 37% (FAO) Food and Agricultural Organization of United Nations. The second sustainable goal of zero hunger pushes for the need to improve food production, nutritious food for all and generate decent incomes, while supporting people-centered rural development and protecting the environment (UN,

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