Hardship: Nigerian Students Trade Shame for Survival, Hunt for Food at Uninvited Events

Ismail Olayinka is one of the undergraduate students of the University of Ilorin, who have in the last few months taken it upon themselves to show up uninvited at different events within and outside the school community to beg for food due to Nigeria’s cost of living crisis.Though he told CAMPUS REPORTER that he is not comfortable hunting for food at events, the economic hardship in the country has made it difficult for to survive on the token sent to him weekly by his parents.

“It is not my wish to keep looking for food at events I wasn’t invited to,” he said. “However, I have no choice. I have to do this to manage the little foodstuff I have for the stipulated time.”

In recent times, Nigerians have had to triple their efforts just to survive since President Bola Tinubu was sworn in in May 2023. While the country’s economic situation was challenging before, the sudden removal of fuel subsidies announced during his inauguration has had a  far-reaching, knock-on effect on the people.

Today, a congo of rice which used to be sold for an average price of N1,200 before Tinubu’s inauguration is now sold for an average of N4,000.

The situation, which has made many Nigerians vulnerable – with many barely surviving, did not spare students across tertiary institutions in the country. As hunger stares them in the face, many students of UNILORIN have devised different strategies just to survive the soaring food prices, including storming events uninvited.

Like Ismail, Joseph Anuoluwapo, who is also an undergraduate of the citadel of learning said he is an ulcer patient and lack of timely food could cause damage to his body.

“This situation (food inflation) actually affects me a lot psychologically, physically, and emotionally. As a person, I eat a lot and if I don’t eat enough food, I will have a headache and because I’m an ulcer patient, my stomach will start paining me, and headaches will start coming in.”

Trading shame for survival 

The students added that the quest to beat hunger usually takes them to the crossroads of choosing between shame and starvation. 

A female student, Mary Saboute, explained that despite combining her hairdressing work with studies, she still finds it difficult to eat three times daily. 

“I have reduced my food intake to just once or twice daily. When there is no food to eat, I develop a headache and stomach pain and I won’t be able to read,” she explained. 

Speaking on behalf of students with disability, Gbenga Olayiwola, corroborated Mary’s claim that the inability to properly cater to their stomachs needs has affected not just their academic performance but their general well-being. 

‘We’re no longer making profits’ — Foodstuffs Sellers

In a similar vein, the campus foodstuffs sellers lamented the reduced patronage of students on foodstuffs as a result of incessant food price hikes from the wholesalers. A pepper seller, who preferred to be identified as Iya Basit, said the hike in food prices has not only reduced students’ patronage but also sellers’ total profit.

“The food inflation is affecting us because if we take N40,000 to the market, we may not even make our capital back let alone profit.”

In a separate interview, Aminu Bello, a food ingredients seller, told CAMPUS REPORTER students are easily discouraged when they learn there is an increase in the price of a product within a few days.

Expressing her displeasure of the plights of students hunting for food at uninvited ceremonies, Sarafadeen Iyabode, mother of one of the students in UNILORIN said her inability to provide enough for her undergraduate wards often puts her in a sober mood.

She equally lamented that the cost of food keeps increasing as students advance in levels, saying that the suffering caused by the inflation is too high to bear.

“I will be in a very sad and sober mood when I don’t have money to send to my children, knowing fully well that they haven’t eaten,” she said. “When the children got admission into 100-level, we were buying the congo of rice from the range of N700 to N1000. At 200-level, it increased to N3000.  May God help us and ease our affairs. The suffering is too much for the students, and may God ease their affairs.”

‘How we’re helping our students’ — Lecturer

A senior lecturer at the Department of Mass Communication in UNILORIN, Dr. Rasaq Adisa, described the hike in food prices as an issue of national concern. According to him, he has adopted different approaches to reduce the effect of the inflationary pressure on his students.

“One way I have been ameliorating the economic hardship for my students is by giving them the opportunity to submit assignments through my email rather than insisting on printing. Similarly, I have given my project students the privilege of soft copy submission from the beginning to the end.”

Government interventions so far

In a bid to cushion the hike in food prices, Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, approved the payment of a N10,000 bursary for the 2023/2024 academic year final year students in March 2023 to Kwara State indigenes in tertiary institutions across the country.

Similarly, the federal government recently commenced a student loan program, providing 240,000 naira per year for students as an upkeep loan. The programme, which commenced in May 2024, attracted over 60,000 student registrations in the first week.

While authorities have also approved an increment of minimum wage to N70,000, it does not appear to be enough to cater for the needs of an average Nigerian. 

An economic expert, Gbenga Adebayo who highlighted the cost of production, cost of labour, insufficient raw materials, and lack of agricultural infrastructures among others as the cause of the hike in food prices, explained that the solution to the issue is for the government to increase agricultural production. 

Adebayo added that there is a need to reduce trade barriers, regulate food prices and strengthen supply chain infrastructure among others in a view to address the food hike challenge which has been an issue for the average Nigerian.

“Excluding food from challenges facing Nigeria will require all families making farming their culture, if small scale farming is adopted by Nigerian households, we will have food surplus, and minimal importation of consumables will relieve our economy as well.” 

He, therefore, advised students to also look into small-scale agriculture as an important aspect of life, which may also open a career path for them in future.

This story was funded by the Campus Reporter project of the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID) and written by students of the University of Ilorin after Campus Reporter’s 42nd campus journalism clinic held in their institution: