The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) report has shown that the COVID-19 pandemic increased food insecurity in Kano, Lagos, Rivers and Abuja.

According to the report, 79 percent of the households surveyed in Rivers said they have been skiping meals since the beginning of the pandemic while 72 percent of households in FCT Abuja said the same thing.

The NBS report said, “Food insecurity appears to be prevalent across all four states, but especially in Rivers and FCT Abuja where 79 per cent of households and 72 per cent of households respectively reported having to skip meals since the start of the pandemic.

“Households in all four states are drawing down their savings and borrowing money to cover their living expenses, which may leave them more economically vulnerable and reduce their investments in human capital in the future.”

Similarly, the report, contained in the 2020 Labour Force Survey for the Second Quarter, noted that the number of people engaged in economic activities in the four states was lower in June and July when compared to the pre-COVID-19 crisis.

It Abuja was the most affected as the number of people working dropped by 14 percentage points during the period.

“Even if some people have resumed work, incomes may still be precarious, with larger shares of workers in Kano and Rivers engaged in agriculture and a smaller share of workers in Lagos engaged in industry than before the COVID-19 crisis,” it stated.

The data for the survey was collected between the 17th of June and 8th of July 2020, the NBS stated.