The House of Representatives on Tuesday called for urgent measures to strengthen Nigeria’s food safety system following concerns that the country records about 50 million cases of foodborne illnesses and more than 53,000 related deaths annually.
The lawmakers urged the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), and the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) to strengthen surveillance, inspection and certification across the country’s food production value chain.
The resolution followed the adoption of a motion of urgent public importance sponsored by Billy Osawaru (APC, Edo).
Leading the debate, Mr Osawaru said unsafe food had become a major public health and economic challenge, despite efforts by the federal government and relevant agencies to improve food safety standards.
Citing figures from the World Health Organisation (WHO), he said unsafe food causes about 866 million illnesses globally every year, equivalent to one in every nine people and is responsible for approximately 1.5 million deaths annually, with Africa bearing the highest burden.
