WeekendSalvo@NaijaAgroNet | By Remmy Nweke With $21bn in new loans, why is Nigeria still begging for $516m to save 1m starving children? We analyze the "Asphalt vs. Bread" paradox and the politics of malnutrition debt.
Introduction:
While the Federal Government and humanitarian partners are currently knocking on the doors of the international community for a $516 million "urgent appeal" to save 1 million children from malnutrition, the national ledger tells a different story. In the same fiscal cycle, the Nigerian Senate has approved a massive $21.19 billion external borrowing plan for 2025–2026.
The contrast is jarring. On one hand, the government is pleading for donor "mercy" to fund the 2026 Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan (HNRP). On the other, it is aggressively securing loans that dwarf the malnutrition appeal by nearly 40 times.
