The SDG No. 2: The Irony Of 2030 And The Quagmire Of A Blessed Nation

JOSHUA NICHOLAS

In September 2015, the General Assembly adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development that included 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Building on the principle of “leaving no one behind”, the new Agenda emphasizes a holistic approach to achieving sustainable development for all.

Goal 2 seeks sustainable solutions to end hunger in all its forms by 2030 and to achieve food security. The aim is to ensure that everyone everywhere has enough good quality food to live a healthy life.

To achieve this goal, the Nigerian society will require better access to food and the widespread promotion of sustainable agriculture.

Can the Nigerian Government be accountable towards achieving this goal?

Does it look like we are ‘near-close’ to it?

5.3 million Nigerians faced acute hunger in 2018, according to a UN report.

Nigeria was one of the countries that experienced the worst food crises in the world in 2018, according to a joint United Nations (UN) and European Union (EU) report published on Tuesday, April 2, 2019.

Data pooled from 15 agencies in the international humanitarian and development community showed that Nigeria was one of the eight countries that housed two-thirds of the 113 million people, who faced acute hunger across the globe in 2019, amongst Yemen, Afghanistan, Ethiopia, South Sudan, etc.

According to the 2019 Global Report on Food Crises (GRFC), the number of people unable to meet their daily food needs without humanitarian assistance has been rising for several years.

Should we say there is a global drought?

Should we say some leadership lack management?

What is our blessed Nation turning into?

Great compatriots, there is still good news. We can still meet the SDG 2 by 2030; if we all stand by each other. This is bigger than a government project. It is a collective programme that the citizenry needs to participate, the NGOs, the religious institutions, every human being.

This brings us to the archive of the Students Union of Nnamdi Azikiwe University Awka, South Eastern, Nigeria.

The academic institution is in the forefront of an educational restoration movement in the Sub-Saharan Africa, and she has been determined to break the records, set the pace, sprout the difference, achieve the uncommon and navigate to the land of history.

With the current exploits in digitalization of every sector in the school, it is assumed that if current trend persists, the institution will find her place within the most 200 sought after schools in the world (it has been given a code name #Project200). Again, Nigeria will make history!

Therefore, due to the excessive hunger in the land and the discouraging figures of food crises in the country, the Students Union Government of the institution under the leadership of Comr. Joseph Okafor has taken it upon themselves to contribute in their very best to terminate the odds and achieve food security in the country, by reaching out to their students.

The Comr. Joseph Okafor led administration had in sometime within the year 2019, organized lunch for the students. In that programme, students of the institution were given noodles and other food items in a bid to meet up the projection of the United Nations in 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals number 2, which is to achieve a Zero hunger state for mankind.

It’s been said that the cumulative of little droplets will chase away total emptiness; that little deed counts, in the effort to make the world a better place, no act is too small, no commitment is irrelevant.

Also, during the students’ week of the institution, which came up during September of same year (2019), this same action was repeated and food items were shared amongst students to take home.

If we can have more of Joseph Okafor, if only we can imbibe the Okafor’s model, if other institutions in Nigeria and Africa can emulate this model and directly provide food items for their students, then we will have a foundation to build upon.

In their response, the students expressed their gratitude, and are truly thankful to the Joseph Okafor led SUG of the institution; they have truly done Noble.

Comr. Joseph Okafor should be recognized by the United Nations and his executives, the Students Union Government of the prestigious Nnamdi Azikiwe University for their relentless efforts to achieve a hunger free society.

I say yes to the SDG 2, I say yes to the United Nations 2030 Agenda, I say yes to the Joseph Okafor Model, I say yes to the #Project200.