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CHAPTER 4: GOAL 1—ERADICATE EXTREME POVERTY AND<br />
HUNGER<br />
Introduction<br />
The MDG 1, Target 1 (<strong>to</strong> halve the proportion <strong>of</strong><br />
people who live on $1 or less per day between<br />
1990 and 2015) and Target 2 (<strong>to</strong> halve the<br />
proportion <strong>of</strong> people suffering from hunger<br />
between 1990 and 2015), provide insight in<strong>to</strong> the<br />
type <strong>of</strong> poverty and hunger we are dealing with in<br />
this report. The four indica<strong>to</strong>rs for MDG1 are:<br />
percentage <strong>of</strong> population living in relative poverty;<br />
percentage <strong>of</strong> population living in extreme poverty<br />
(consuming 2,900 calories or lower daily);<br />
percentage <strong>of</strong> population living below $1/day<br />
(purchasing power parity - PPP); and percentage<br />
<strong>of</strong> underweight children.<br />
National Context <strong>of</strong> Poverty and Hunger in<br />
<strong>Nigeria</strong><br />
The high prevalence <strong>of</strong> poverty in <strong>Nigeria</strong> is a<br />
major challenge for development <strong>of</strong> the country.<br />
The suffering <strong>of</strong> the poor in <strong>Nigeria</strong> is a very sharp<br />
contrast <strong>to</strong> the fact that the country is richly<br />
endowed with both human and material resources.<br />
Majority <strong>of</strong> the population <strong>of</strong> over 140 million<br />
people live in either extreme or relative poverty.<br />
The poor in <strong>Nigeria</strong> lack adequate food and basic<br />
amenities for good living.<br />
Data from the National Bureau <strong>of</strong> Statistics (NBS)<br />
shows that the incidence <strong>of</strong> poverty is higher in<br />
the northern part <strong>of</strong> <strong>Nigeria</strong> compared <strong>to</strong> the<br />
southern part. Generally, poverty is more<br />
prevalent in the rural areas <strong>of</strong> the country than in<br />
the urban areas. Paradoxically, the rural<br />
smallholder farmers–the people feeding the<br />
country–are among its poorest. These farmers<br />
wallow in poverty and live in a deplorable state<br />
while their efforts <strong>to</strong>wards food production are<br />
hindered by several fac<strong>to</strong>rs. However, as reported<br />
by the NBS, relative poverty is higher in the urban<br />
centres than in the rural parts <strong>of</strong> the country.<br />
There is also the educational dimension <strong>to</strong> poverty<br />
in <strong>Nigeria</strong>. The higher the educational attainments<br />
level, the lower the incidence <strong>of</strong> poverty. Poverty<br />
is concentrated among persons with no education<br />
and those with only primary education. 5<br />
Poverty and hunger go hand-in-hand and spread<br />
through the entire country due <strong>to</strong> unequal<br />
distribution <strong>of</strong> income and high rate <strong>of</strong><br />
unemployment. Unemployment has become an<br />
endemic and almost permanent feature <strong>of</strong> the<br />
<strong>Nigeria</strong>n economy. Various surveys by the<br />
National Bureau <strong>of</strong> Statistics show that the<br />
unemployed constitute a critical component <strong>of</strong> the<br />
core poor.<br />
Accurate estimate <strong>of</strong> poverty and hunger is elusive<br />
in <strong>Nigeria</strong> as a result <strong>of</strong> difficulties with household<br />
data collection. Consequently assessments <strong>of</strong><br />
5 See Aigbokhan B. (2008) UNECA Unpublished Paper, Addis Ababa,<br />
Ethiopia<br />
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