These are trying times for Nigerians. Already clobbered by myriad socio-economic challenges such as rising crime and unemployment rates
, insurgency, extreme poverty, and a general economic slowdown, among others, the sudden increase in prices of food items has added a new and scary dimension to the mix.
He, however, said as, at Monday, August 26, 2019, it sold at the rate of N14, 500. “This is outrageous,” Adekoya charged, noting that while the Federal Government’s initiative of encouraging local rice production was a step in the right direction, it shouldn’t be at the expense of the masses who consume the product at a premium.
Kehinde said before now, a 50 kg bag of local rice sold for between N12, 000 and N13, 500, but since last week Tuesday, the price skyrocketed to N14, 500, with some dealers currently selling for between N14, 600 and N15, 000. “What do they want us to eat?” she asked. However, prices of other food items such as beans, garri, semovita, tomato, pepper, and tartashe appear not to have been affected, as their prices remain relatively cheap in the market. For instance, a bag of beans is currently sold for between N18, 000 and N25, 000, as against its earlier price of between N35, 000 and N46, 000.
President Muhammadu Buhari this week Wednesday in Japan explained that the partial closure of the borders with the Benin Republic was due to the massive smuggling activities, especially of rice, taking place on that corridor. For instance, NECA Director-General Timothy Olawale argued that Nigeria cannot adopt such a policy since she currently relies on importation to make up for the shortfall in local production, warning that the implications of the move on the economy could be dire.
Dr Iyama, however, told The Nation that the Association has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with some Russian investors to create large storage facilities across the country to forestall food price volatility occasioned by a shortage in supply. The facilities, according to him, can store produce for nine months.
The expert, who reiterated that seasonal shortage was responsible for the present situation, noted that Nigerians are eating old stock of most food items, which is why their prices are high. Sadly, several of these states affected by flooding are under the CBN’s Anchor Borrower Programme , which made billions of naira in funding to farmers of rice, wheat, maize, cotton, cassava, poultry, soybeans and groundnut.
The situation was so bad that the former Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh, had to warn that unless appropriate measures were taken to replant after the floods, the country might experience rice shortage.
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