By Tony Obiechina, Abuja

In a move to tackle high cost of foodstuffs, President Bola Tinubu has approved a 150-day duty-free import window for maize, husked brown rice, wheat, and cowpeas.

This initiative suspends duties, tariffs, and taxes on these imports through both land and sea borders.

Similarly, the Federal Government will import 250,000 metric tons of maize and 250 metric tons of wheat to satisfy the demand by small-scale processors and millers across the country.

This was made known by the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari at a press briefing in Abuja yesterday.

This measure is part of the Presidential Accelerated Stabilisation and Advancement Plan.

Under the new arrangement, imported food commodities will be subject to a Recommended Retail Price (RRP).

In the words of the minister, “Over the past several months, we have all been witnesses to the escalating cost of food items in all parts of the country.

“There is virtually no food item that has not had its price raised to a level higher than what a good many Nigerians can afford.

“The affordability crisis in our food security system has been indexed by the data from the National Bureau of Statistics which by the last count, had put food inflation at 40.66%.

“We have heard the cries of Nigeria over the prices of food items and condiments, with some now describing tomato as gold and proposing a variety of recipes to prepare soups and dishes with some of the overly priced food items.

“What in the past were regarded as common items such as yam, plantain, potato now command excessively high figures and Nigerians are right to wonder how and why things are the way they are.”

The minister recalled that President Bola Tinubu in March 2024 constituted the Presidential Economic Coordination Council (PECC) under which, the Economic Management Team (EMT) who presented an Accelerated Stabilization and Advancement Plan to the President.

He said part of the decision of the EMT to ameliorate food inflation in the country is a 150-Day Duty Free Import Window for Food Commodities, suspension of duties, tariffs and taxes for the importation of certain food commodities (through land and sea borders) which include Maize, Husked Brown Rice, Wheat and Cowpeas and under this arrangement, imported food commodities will be subjected to a Recommended Retail Price (RRP).

“In addition to the importation by private sector, Federal Government will import 250,000MT of Wheat and 250,000MT of Maize.

“The imported food commodities in their semi processed state will target supplies to the small-scale processors and millers across the country.

“Engage relevant stakeholders to set a Guaranteed Minimum Price (GMP) and mop up surplus assorted food commodities to restock the National Strategic Food Reserve, continuous ramp-up production for the 2024/2025 farming cycle,” he noted.yari said there will be a sustained support to smallholder farmers in the ongoing wet season farming through existing government initiatives and the government will strengthen and accelerate Dry Season Farming across the country.

He said government will embark on aggressive agricultural mechanization and development to reduce drudgery, drive down the cost of production and boost productivity, collaborate with Sub-National to identify irrigable lands and increase land under cultivation and work closely with the Federal Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitation, to rehabilitate and maintain irrigation facilities under river basin authorities across the federation.

He said there will be the development of a strategic engagement for the youth and women across the federation for immediate greenhouse cultivation of horticultural crops such as tomatoes and pepper to increase production volume, stabilize prices, and address food shortages and fast-tracking ongoing engagements with the Nigerian Military to rapidly cultivate arable lands under the Defence Farms Scheme, while encouraging other Para-Military establishments to put secured available arable lands to cultivation.

“As our nation confronts a critical food security challenge, let me reiterate Mr. President’s unwavering commitment to attaining food security and ensuring that no Nigerian goes to bed hungry.

“To this end, I can assure all Nigerians, that my team and I, will swiftly and diligently actualize these crucial policies to ensure food security for everyone in the country in the immediate term as we also continue our strategies for long term interventions to address the underlying causes and ensure sustainable and resilient food systems in the country”, the minister stated.

Concerning the quality and genetic composition of the imported food, the minister assured, “The government’s position exemplifies standards that would not compromise the safety of the various food items for consumption.”

In his reaction to the development, a Professor of Capital Market at the Nasarawa State University, Keffi, Uche Uwalaka described it as a welcome development.

He told our reporter, “I think it is a welcome stop-gap measure aimed at moderating food inflation, which is largely caused by supply constraints occasioned by insecurity in the food belt regions of the country.

“The reality is that the government needs to buy time to deal with the legacy supply-side factors fueling inflation in Nigeria.

“I also think the CBN is in a position to intervene in the Fx market to stabilize the exchange rate following any associated pressure in the Fx market given the recent accretion to external reserves to over USD 34billion.

“Indeed, any fiscal measure at this time to reduce the high rate of hunger in the land is welcome.”