Rising banditry, Buhari warns, poses a threat to food security.

President Muhammadu Buhari has stated that he intends to combat increasing banditry and kidnapping in the country in order to ensure food security in Africa’s most populated country.

The President said in an emailed statement on Thursday that the government

He said security agencies are working to ensure that people can work on farms safely in order to provide food surpluses, even for export.

Conflict and banditry have exacerbated food shortages, driving up prices already inflated by import restrictions. Food prices are rising at their highest rate in over 15 years, with market inflation at 18.2% in March.

Since last year, Nigeria has experienced a wave of kidnappings and killings, especially of students, which has forced the closure of hundreds of schools in the country’s north. This is on top of a decade-long conflict with Islamist militants in the northeast, a deteriorating conflict between nomadic cattle herders and grain farmers in the central and southern regions, and a recent separatist insurgency in the southeast.

Earlier this week, Buhari met with military and intelligence officials to address the rising insecurity. Governors also urged the president to give a national address on how he is handling the crisis.