Nigeria has developed a food systems dashboard featuring 285 indicators to monitor national food security, nutrition and agricultural development priorities, the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition, GAIN, has said.
Miracle Owolawi, Policy and Advocacy Associate at GAIN, disclosed this on Thursday in Abuja during the Sahel Changemakers Conference 2026.
He explained that the platform provides national and state-level data to help policymakers identify gaps, assess progress and make evidence-based decisions towards transforming the country’s food systems.
According to Owolawi, the dashboard contains disaggregated information covering Nigeria’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
He said the platform sources its information from the National Bureau of Statistics, agricultural performance surveys and the National Living Standards Survey.
The indicators provide historical data dating back to 2018, with updates extending to 2025, allowing users to assess food systems performance over time.
Owolawi explained that the dashboard operates through three major functions: describing existing conditions, diagnosing underlying challenges and identifying policy interventions to address the gaps.
He noted that the platform would help policymakers understand how different interventions influence agricultural production, food availability, affordability, nutrition and environmental sustainability.
He added that businesses could use the information to identify supply and demand gaps, while researchers could access metadata for further studies and secondary analysis.
Owolawi further disclosed that efforts were ongoing to integrate food systems and climate data to provide a more comprehensive understanding of the country’s transformation priorities.
Joyce Akpata, Head of Policy and Advocacy at GAIN, stressed the need for government ownership, adequate funding and institutional coordination to ensure the dashboard’s sustainability.
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Akpata said the Ministry of Agriculture had made budgetary provisions for the platform for three years, although GAIN was still addressing internal capacity gaps, public sector bureaucracy and conflicting institutional responsibilities.
She disclosed that GAIN was collaborating with the NBS and the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning to establish a management framework for the platform.
According to her, a stakeholder advisory group and technical team had also been established to strengthen capacity ahead of the eventual transfer of the dashboard to the government.
She emphasised that regular data updates, technical expertise and actual release of funds were necessary to maintain the platform’s relevance, warning that an outdated dashboard would gradually lose its usefulness.
Meanwhile, Dr James Adamu, Technical Assistant to the Director-General of the Nigerian Meteorological Agency, called for an integrated data-sharing framework among government institutions.
Adamu said such a framework would enable agencies to exchange information seamlessly through Key Performance Indicators, eliminating the need for repeated data requests.
He revealed that NiMet had developed an online mapping platform that allows users to access location-specific climate information and assess agricultural suitability across the country.
He explained that farmers could use the platform to determine the suitability of crops, including maize, based on factors such as temperature and crop water requirements.
The platform also provides information on climate, health, water resources and disaster risks, including malaria, meningitis and dry spells.
Mr Uko Ekott, Country Representative of the Catholic Agency for Overseas Development, called for stronger community participation in policy formulation.
Ekott argued that communities should contribute local evidence and traditional knowledge rather than remain passive recipients of government policies.
Citing a project in Plateau State, he explained that communities had applied traditional food storage methods, urging development agencies to recognise and build on existing local practices.
He added that community development groups, market associations and farmers’ organisations could help gather grassroots information to guide policy decisions.
Ekott also warned that overlapping responsibilities among government ministries often create conflicts and weaken development investments.
NAN
