Civil society organisations have taken to the streets in Abuja to demand greater transparency and adequate safeguards over the Federal Government’s proposed two-point-five-billion-dollar investment partnership with global meat-processing company JBS.
The protesters want the government to ensure that the deal protects Nigerian farmers, host communities, the environment and the country’s food system.
“Disclose the deal. Food, not poison. Protect our land. Protect our future.”
These were some of the chants from protesters in Abuja as they called for greater scrutiny of the proposed two-point-five-billion-dollar JBS investment in Nigeria’s livestock sector.
Led by the Health of Mother Earth Foundation, HOMEF, the protesters marched through the streets of the nation’s capital, demanding transparency before the investment takes off.
While the investment has been presented as an opportunity to modernise Nigeria’s livestock industry, create jobs, boost food production and attract foreign capital, the protesters say the conversation must go beyond factories and economic opportunities.
They want answers to broader questions around land, livestock, farmers and food production and ultimately, who controls Nigeria’s food system.
For the protesters, the demands are straightforward: disclose the details of the deal, protect farmers and communities, safeguard the environment and ensure that economic development does not come at the expense of Nigeria’s land, water and food security.
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(Nkoli Omhoudu)
