The World Bank’s latest warning about deteriorating food security across West and Central Africa has raised concern, as millions of people are projected to face food access issues in the next few months, with global events continuing to affect agricultural output and supply chains.
The News Chronicle reports that between June and August 2026, some 52.9 million people, many of them in northern Nigeria, will suffer from severe food and nutrition insecurity.
The World Bank says the ongoing war in the Middle East is raising the prices of fuel, transportation, and fertilizers, thereby creating new difficulties for nations heavily dependent on imported agricultural inputs.
Among the places most at risk, according to the bank, are the Sahel region, the Lake Chad Basin, and parts of northeastern Nigeria. Increasing production costs and farmers’ limited capacity to purchase necessary inputs will also affect the 2026/2027 season by influencing fertilizer prices.
Recent statistics indicated that urea costs soared significantly, while maize and wheat prices continued to rise as worldwide energy and fertilizer supply lines were disrupted. The World Bank cautioned that trade disruptions, insecurity, climate shocks, and conflict still pose the greatest risks to food availability across the region.
Even as yields and grain supplies have increased in some places, the institute said that food security conditions remain unstable, and millions of needy households are under increasing financial pressure and uncertainty.
