The United States has warned that disruptions to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz could worsen food insecurity in Nigeria and other sub-Saharan African countries due to fertilizer shortages and rising energy costs.
Speaking at a United Nations Security Council Open Debate on Food Insecurity in New York, the Alternative Representative for Special Political Affairs at the US Mission to the United Nations, Amb. Jennifer Locetta, said Iran’s attacks and disruption of shipping through the Strait were obstructing nearly one-quarter of global oil trade and roughly one-third of global fertilizer trade.
“We are outraged that the Iranian regime continues its egregious and unconscionable efforts to disrupt freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz,” Locetta said.
She said fertilizers being prevented from passing through the Strait were critical to food production in sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia and parts of Southeast Asia.
The Strait of Hormuz, which links the Persian Gulf to the Indian Ocean, handles about 20 per cent of global oil supplies and nearly 33 per cent of fertilizer shipments.
Locetta warned that reduced agricultural output in the coming months could lead to food shortages, higher prices and increased hunger in countries including Sudan, Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
“The projected loss in agricultural outputs in the coming months mean less food, higher prices, and more hunger in places like Sudan, Nigeria, and the DRC,” she said.
She added that rising fuel costs resulting from the disruption were already affecting humanitarian operations, while price increases in conflict-affected areas such as Syria and Gaza threatened recent gains in food security.
According to Locetta, the World Food Programme projects that an additional 45 million people could face acute food insecurity globally as a result of the crisis.
Citing data from the Famine Early Warning Systems Network, she said more than 16 million people in the DRC require food assistance, while armed groups continue to obstruct humanitarian routes and an Ebola outbreak threatens millions more.
On Sudan, Locetta said parties to the conflict had reportedly used access to food as a weapon of war, calling for rapid, safe and unhindered humanitarian access across the country.
She also warned that natural phenomena, including El Niño, could push tens of millions more people into acute hunger.
The US envoy said Washington remained committed to addressing global hunger under UN Security Council Resolution 2417, adopted in 2018.
She disclosed that the United States had recently committed more than $1 billion in assistance to UNICEF and the World Food Programme to address humanitarian, nutrition and food security needs.
The US, she added, was also “actively pursuing options to respond to fertilizer shortages.”
“The United States will not abandon the needy or leave them to suffer hunger, whether the result of conflicts or natural disasters,” she said.
The warning comes amid growing concerns that escalating tensions between Iran and Israel and attacks on shipping in the Middle East could deepen the global food crisis into 2027, with sub-Saharan Africa expected to be among the hardest hit regions.
Nigeria’s agriculture sector is particularly vulnerable, as the country relies heavily on imported fertilisers and other farm inputs, with an estimated 70 per cent sourced from outside the country.
The country is already battling rising food prices, driven by insecurity in farming communities, high transportation costs, flooding and the removal of fuel subsidy in 2023.
The National Bureau of Statistics reported that food inflation stood at 22.22 per cent in July 2026.
The UN’s Cadre Harmonisé report also projected that more than 31 million Nigerians could face acute food insecurity between June and August 2026 if urgent action is not taken.
The World Food Programme and the Food and Agriculture Organisation have repeatedly warned that fertilizer shortages and high diesel costs are already forcing some Nigerian smallholder farmers to reduce cultivation or switch to less input-intensive crops, potentially threatening agricultural output during the 2026/2027 farming season.
Titilope Adako is a talented and intrepid journalist, dedicated to shedding light on the untold stories of Osun State and Nigeria. Through incisive reporting, she tackles a broad spectrum of topics, from politics and social justice to culture and entertainment, with a commitment to accuracy, empathy, and inspiring positive change.
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