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The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari, has expressed optimism that Nigeria’s current food inflation will soon be resolved due to the policies and infrastructure the Federal Government is implementing.
During an appearance on Channels Television on Sunday night, on a program anchored by Seun Okinbaloye, Kyari explained that President Bola Tinubu deliberately renamed the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security to emphasize the focus on food security in Nigeria.
“When Mr. President appointed us, he renamed the ministry from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security. That is for emphasis to show that there is a deliberate attempt to make sure there is food security in Nigeria,” Kyari said.
He cited the country’s food challenges as the reason for this emphasis.
“We need to tackle the food challenges that we are facing, and that is why there is emphasis on food production and affordability to see that food inflation is reduced.
“We saw that the affordability issues are creeping. As we are talking, there is rice in the market but for the affordability, supply and demand are already taking place,” he said.
Addressing the population explosion in Nigeria and the need to plan for future food needs, Kyari noted, “Nigeria is growing rapidly we have to understand and population explosion in the urban areas is expected to reach about 400 million by the year 2050 which is already 26 years away.”
When asked about the government’s plan to address the country’s inability to feed its population, Kyari explained, “The rate of production is lower than the rate of population growth. Where food is produced is not where it is processed. Where it is processed is not necessarily where it is consumed. There are steps and infrastructure is needed, even farm infrastructure must be improved upon and we are doing that.”
He emphasized the challenges involved, saying, “There are challenges already. If you’re trying to build a two-storey building, you will have to dig the foundation but if you have to build a 50-story building, you will have to dig even deeper. What Mr. President is trying to do is that he is giving us a directive to do what is right. We need to mechanize, then we need to involve the private sector.”
To improve farm infrastructure for mechanized farming, Kyari revealed that Nigeria has placed orders for the importation of tools and implements. “We have to make an order. I went to Belarus where we have ordered 2,000 tractors and 9,000 of other implements including planters, harrowers, sprinklers, etc. They have produced 5,000 of the 9,000 and within the next 30 to 60 days, they will be here.”
When asked what the Tinubu-led administration would bequeath to Nigerians regarding food security, Kyari detailed the government’s plans, particularly highlighting cassava production. “Cassava is one of what we have on top right now. We have a team that is working to unbundle the cassava season. There are lots of interventions in the South East, in the South West and in the North Central where we are getting in touch with one of the largest growers of cassava. A lady, Yemisi out of Oyo State who has a large grower scheme of cassava. We have spoken with them and in the next two weeks, we will start to plant cassava stems in the south by the end of August and first week of September. Cassava is really huge,” he said.
Kyari also mentioned yam as a major crop, stating, “We are number one yam growers in the world. We need to look at infrastructure and do things right. The yam going out of Ghana is from Nigeria. They only settle down, clean the tubers, then package very well and send them out.”
Optimistic about reducing food prices, Kyari said, “New yam is out and the prices are coming down. Potatoes are also coming out and prices are coming down. Tomatoes are coming down in price but within the last two days because of the protests the price is rising again.”
Kyari also addressed the issue of agrarian rural communities lacking financial institutions, which leads to the use of agricultural produce to store value, explaining the reasons for hoarding.
“You would see farmers keeping agricultural commodities to store value whenever the need arises or during festivities. This is happening all over the place. When the government went around, we were able to see some warehouses locked up with grains inside in Kano and it is one of the issues we are tackling. What we are talking about is the human factor. Mr. President has directed states to be given grains free of charge.”
However, Kyari acknowledged complaints about some individuals re-bagging and selling grains despite the President’s directive for free distribution.
On why the Federal Government is not pegging food commodity prices, Kyari explained, “This is the first time we are doing this rice production. We have to look at the costs to be able to determine a fair price at the end of the day. Once you do that, you will be able to peg the price. These are the issues we look at to be able to use the commodity board looking at the imputation or guarantee minimum price for farmers. We don’t want to discourage farmers from cultivating. We will have a system where we will guarantee minimum prices for the farmers. We have done a lot of fertilization, we have done herbicide, insecticide, variety of inputs. We are trying to do 50,000 to 60,000 hectares of cassava within this planting season. We are mainly going to use the private sector,” he said.
