Food inflation: Students groan on campuses

When Elisha (other names withheld), a student at a public university in Lagos State, came home during a break, his father could barely recognize him. Though not ill, Elisha was visibly emaciated, a stark sign of malnutrition. On campus, the accounting education student told his concerned father that he could only afford to eat bread and beans, as most food items had become unaffordable for the average citizen.

“I was outside the house when I saw him coming on a commercial motorbike. Even from afar, I could see how lean he was. When he came down and greeted me, I asked him whether he fell sick in school and he said nothing of such happened. I asked him whether he knew he had emaciated and what he thought was the reason,” Elisha’s father recounted.

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“The reply I got was shocking. He said he mostly ate bread and beans on campus. They cannot cook in the hostels, which are even overcrowded. To eat what we call ‘swallows’ is a luxury most of the time.

“I felt bad but apart from him, I still have three other children in the same university. And this is a school where we paid less than N40,000 as fees just a couple of years ago and we are now being made to pay nearly N200,000,” Elisha’s father, a medical worker in a Lagos teaching hospital, said.

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Elisha’s experience underscores the broader issue of rising living costs and food insecurity faced by students in Nigerian universities. As food prices soar and tuition fees increase dramatically, many students are forced to survive on minimal and inadequate diets. This situation not only affects their physical health but also their academic performance and overall well-being.

The inability to cook in overcrowded hostels further compounds the problem, leaving students with limited and often expensive food options. The plight of Elisha and his peers calls for urgent attention from university authorities and government officials to address food insecurity and the high cost of living for students.

As the academic year progresses, it remains to be seen how universities and policymakers will respond to these challenges, ensuring that students like Elisha can pursue their education without compromising their health and well-being.