British Food (In)security Policies in Colonial Nigeria and Popular Reactions in the Southwestern and Southeastern Provinces, 1939–45

Abstract

Abstract: The effects of the Second World War on food insecurity in Africa have gained scholarly attention over the past few years; however, there have been no comprehensive attempts to provide historical evidence and analyze the experience of food insecurity in the colonial territories that later transformed into Southern Nigeria. This article fills this gap in research and argues that the demands of the British colonial government for food supplies, along with other policies geared toward agricultural regulation such as the Pullen Scheme, led to such inflation of food prices in urban centers that rural producers could not meet the demand for foodstuffs. The resulting food shortage triggered reactions from indigenous peoples, particularly market women in the southern and eastern provinces of colonial Nigeria. The article supports its arguments using a combination of sources from the Nigerian National Archives, newspaper reports, and peer-reviewed journals.