Nigeria faces a dual crisis of rising food insecurity and worsening climate impacts. By 2025, an estimated 33.1 million Nigerians are expected to be food insecure, with around 35% of children under five stunted, especially in the north. Ranked 110th of 127 countries on the 2024 Global Hunger Index, Nigeria’s challenges are driven by economic, environmental, and nutritional factors. GAIN engaged Sawubon Advisory Services to generate insights on the climate–nutrition nexus, supporting the integration of climate and nutrition into policies and programs. Climate change—rising temperatures, erratic rainfall, and extreme weather—has already reduced agricultural productivity, and by 2080, yields of millet and sorghum in northern Nigeria could fall 13–20%. With over 80% of agriculture rain-dependent, these trends threaten sustainable food production and nutrition outcomes.
For International Women’s Day 2026, GAIN aligns with the global theme “Rights. Justice. Action. For ALL Women and Girls”, highlighting how investing in nutrition supports women’s rights, strengthens agency, and drives long-term development.
Micronutrient deficiencies, particularly those of vitamin D and Folate, are global public health concerns that significantly affect populations in developing regions. Vitamin D deficiency affects over one billion people globally, with 37.3% having serum levels below 50 nmol/L, particularly in sun-limited regions and high-risk populations [1–4].
Food choices play a dual role in shaping both human health and environmental sustainability. At the individual level, diets that lack diversity, fall short of essential nutrients, contain excessive amounts of foods high in sugar, unhealthy fats, and salt, or fail to meet food safety standards, and can have serious negative consequences for health (Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, 2025; World Health Organization, n.d.). At the same time, the ways food is produced and consumed affect the environment, —contributing to land degradation, freshwater depletion, climate change, and biodiversity loss (Crippa et al., 2021; Tilman et al., 2017). These environmental impacts, in turn, influence which foods are available, accessible, and affordable, and can alter the nutrient density of crops (Beach et al., 2019; Smith & Myers, 2018), reinforcing this close connection between our food choices and the environment.
Vegetables For All Project – Uganda Impact Stories highlights how access to sustainable vegetable farming is transforming lives and communities in Uganda.
Vegetables For All Project – Uganda Impact Stories highlights how access to sustainable vegetable farming is transforming lives and communities in Uganda.
Vegetables For All Project – Uganda Impact Stories highlights how access to sustainable vegetable farming is transforming lives and communities in Uganda.
Vegetables For All Project – Uganda Impact Stories highlights how access to sustainable vegetable farming is transforming lives and communities in Uganda.
As an archipelagic nation, Indonesia ranks third globally in fisheries and aquaculture production. Despite these abundant, nutrient-rich aquatic resources, the country still faces significant malnutrition challenges stemming from insufficient intake of protein, micronutrients, and essential fatty acids. In 2021, the average per capita fish consumption in Indonesia reached 25.33 kg, notably lower than Malaysia (52.7 kg), a nation with fewer resources (KKP, World Population Review). This disparity highlights the gap between resources availability and dietary outcomes.
Nigeria’s food systems are critical for national development, yet women face
deep-seated gender inequalities that restrict their participation, productivity, and access to resources, significantly hindering overall food security.
Achieving a resilient and equitable food system requires moving beyond genderneutral rhetoric towards intentional policy shifts, fostering inclusive governance, and investing in gender equity across the entire food system.
Prioritise equitable access to productive resources, strengthen women’s leadership in decision-making, enhance gender-disaggregated data systems, and champion community-led social norm change to build a sustainable food system where no one is left behind.
