President Bola Tinubu has reiterated his administration’s firm stance against importing food into Nigeria amid rising food crises and inflation rates.
This declaration was made during a meeting with the Forum of State Chairmen of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the State House in Abuja on Friday.
According to recent data from the National Bureau of Statistics, Nigeria’s food inflation rate has surged to a worrying 37.92% as of February 2024, leading to suggestions that importing food could alleviate the pressure on food prices across the nation.
However, President Tinubu emphasized that importing food would not effectively address the current food crisis and could potentially fuel corruption and rent-seeking activities.
Instead, the administration is committed to investing in the agricultural sector and promoting mechanized farming in the country.
President Tinubu highlighted ongoing efforts to supply fertilizers to farmers and emphasized the importance of agriculture and economic diversification as solutions to the country’s challenges.
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“We are prioritizing mechanized farming and providing fertilizers to farmers. Agriculture and economic diversification hold the key to our problems.
We will not rely on food imports. We have the expertise to turn scarcity into abundance, and we will demonstrate this once again to the world,” he stated.
The President also revealed that the government has developed a comprehensive strategy for large-scale livestock farming, which will be implemented soon.
Recent reports indicate that Nigeria’s inflation has reached a 28-year high, with food inflation rising to 37.92% due to increased prices of essential items.
To address the food crisis, the government released 42,000 tonnes of grain from the national reserve and donated over 2 million bags of fertilizers worth about N100 billion to the agricultural sector.
However, despite these measures, food prices continue to rise, making it challenging for many citizens to afford basic food items.
