Nigeria: Food security - President meets with state governors, approves immediate release of funds

Source : Government of Nigeria

President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua and the Governors of the nation’s thirty-six states met yesterday, 28/04/2008, to address the challenges of food production and food security in the country.

The meeting approved an immediate release of about N80 billion from the Natural Resources Development Fund (NRDF) for the importation of 500,000 metric tonnes of rice from Thailand.

The meeting also approved the immediate release of about 11,000 metric tonnes of grains from the Federal Government Strategic Reserve in order to moderate the increasing prices of food in the country. Government had earlier released 40 million metric tonnes of grains from the grains reserve.

The Ondo State Governor, Olusegun Agagu, who briefed mewsmen after the meeting, alongside Governors Obong Godswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom State, and Ibrahim Shekarau of Kano State, as well as the Minister of Agriculture and Water Resources, Abba Ruma said that the importation was a short-term measure aimed at "stemming the alarming increase in food prices. But because we envisage already some short fall in supply of rice, we therefore took a decision to import 500,000 metric tonnes of rice to be sold to our people at subsidized rates. These measures are for the immediate short-term in order to dampen the escalating price in the markets and make food available to our people."

Other decisions of the meeting according to the Governor include "very drastic possible revolutionary steps to address the challenge of food production and food security in Nigeria."

Towards this, a tripartite measure between the Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources, the 36 States and the nation's research institutes is "to ensure that in the medium to long term Nigeria will not produce only enough food for herself but should be in a position to export", Agagu explained.

He said the Natural Resources Development Fund will be dedicated towards the development of agriculture and production of food over the next four years. Details are to be worked out between the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources and the state governors shortly.

The state governors also agreed to substantially increase their budgetary allocation for agriculture over the next four years.

In addition, Dr Agagu disclosed that the Federal Government would put in place special measures aimed at ensuring the sustenance and enforcement of policies and regulations of Government aimed at stimulating domestic production of food and food products.

Furthermore, Ruma told journalists that the choice of Thailand for the importation of the rice was because though a number of countries had stopped the export of rice, the Asian country had dedicated about 3.9 million metric tonnes of rice for export to Africa.

He also noted that already, Thailand was supporting a rice-producing group (Stallion Group) in large-scale rice production in Nigeria.

Unlike in the past when the Federal Government had allowed businessmen to import rice, the current importation would be handled by Government.

Governor Shekarau added that "adequate measures will be put in place to ensure that the rice that will be imported, including the ones that is being produced in Nigeria, do not find their way outside the borders of Nigeria.

According to the governors, by the time the imported rice arrives, a bag of rice that currently goes for between N10,000 to N12,000 may come down to "about N5,000 per bag or less and so those who are hoarding may have no other option than to release them."