The Nigerian government, led by President Bola Tinubu, has announced several measures to address rising food prices across the country. These measures include removing tariffs on rice and planning significant imports of maize and wheat.
Senator Abubakar Kyari, the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, revealed that these actions would take place over the next 180 days.
“A 150-Day Duty-Free Import Window for food commodities which includes; suspension of duties, tariffs, and taxes for the importation of certain food commodities through land and sea borders,” Kyari explained.
The priority commodities benefiting from this duty-free window are maize, husked brown rice, wheat, and cowpeas. The government plans to import 250,000 metric tonnes of both wheat and maize to support this initiative.
“The imported food commodities in their semi-processed state will target supplies to the small-scale processors and millers across the country,” Kyari added.
The government emphasized the importance of quality, stating that all imported commodities would meet specific standards and be sold at a Recommended Retail Price (RRP). Additionally, they will work with stakeholders to establish a Guaranteed Minimum Price (GMP) to help manage surplus food supplies and restock the National Strategic Food Reserve.
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To further enhance food production and stabilize prices, the government plans to engage youth and women in greenhouse cultivation of horticultural crops like tomatoes and peppers. This effort aims to boost production volumes and address food shortages.
The government will also launch “The Renewed Hope National Livestock Transformation Implementation Committee” on July 9, 2024.
This committee will focus on developing and implementing policies for livestock development in alignment with the National Livestock Transformation Plan.
The Tinubu administration intends to scale up support for the Homs Green Initiative, backed by the Office of the First Lady of Nigeria, to bolster these efforts.
“The success of the measures aforementioned is contingent on the cooperation and collaboration of all relevant MDAs and stakeholders,” the government stated in its press release.