The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, has revealed that the Federal Government will soon take delivery of the procured imported staple food items into the country.
Edun noted that the delivery of the imported food items such as maize and wheat will to tackle food shortages and help to bring down prices of food stuffs.
This was contained in a statement by the Minister on Thursday in Abuja during an Inter-Ministerial Press Briefing. This was part of activities to mark Nigeria’s 64th Independence Anniversary.
Edun said the procured food items would soon arrive in Nigeria. He, however, stressed that the importation is an interim measure so that it won’t affect local food production.
“In the meantime, there is a short-term measure to import food. The Government has already ordered procured maize and wheat which is on its way.
“It is critical that we do not disrupt domestic production of food. We do not disrupt farming in Nigeria by flooding the market with imports. That now put prices where farmers are now discouraged from engaging in production. And millers are discouraged from engaging in food processing.
“As a result, the conversations are on to see what quantity we can bring in without disrupting the agricultural sector.
“In the short term, yes, we are intervening through some imports and wet season procurement and delivery of the right import. But in the long term, we must identify and put in place strategies to increase agriculture productivity,” the Minister said.
Recall that Nigeria has been battling one of its worst economic crises in recent times. This is even as living and energy costs have skyrocketed.
Many have put the blame on the twin policies of the Tinubu’s administration’s removal of petrol subsidy and unification of the foreign exchange windows in May 2023.
Recall also, that in August, aggrieved youths protested against the hunger and economic hardship in the country for the first 10 days of the month.
This is even as the National Bureau of State Statistics, NBS, stated that nation’s inflationary rate stood at 32.15% in August.
According to NBS, the food inflation rate in August 2024 was 37.52% on a year-on-year basis. This, it said, was 8.18% points higher compared to the rate recorded in August 2023 (29.34%).
The Bureau, however, attributed the rise in food inflation on a year-on-year basis to increases in prices of some staples. These include bread, maize, grains, guinea corn, bread, cereals and yam. Others are Irish potatoes, water yam, cassava tuber, palm oil, and vegetable.
Recall that in its efforts to cushioning the effects of the inflation, the Bola Tinubu administration alongside governors in the 36 States rolled out palliatives.
However, most Nigerians have continued to lament the excruciating effect of the inflation. This is as the runaway inflationary trend has impacted severely on prices of staple food items.
source: Channels TV
Follow us for more news on our WhatsApp News Channels @
https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaC505jB4hdZ5Yx9g82U