* says rising food crisis not peculiar to Nigeria
By Chesa Chesa
As concerns over scarcity and rising prices of food mount, the Federal Government says that 60,000 metric tonnes of grains are currently stored in silos under the country’s national strategic grain reserve.
The grain reserve was even well over 79,277 metric tonnes until part of it was distributed to the public to cushion the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on Nigerians between 2020-2021.
Minister of Agriculture, Mohammed Abubakar made the disclosure on Thursday when he addressed the weekly Ministerial Media Briefing anchored by the Presidential Communications Team at the State House, Abuja.
The Minister also disclosed that through an aggressive policy on agriculture, about 3.6 million indirect jobs were created from $1.113 billion (about N461.9billion) worth of externally funded projects currently being implemented by the authorities.
Abubakar explained that $538 million was approved for special agricultural processing zones to support inclusive and sustainable agricultural development in the country.
The Minister said further, that another project worth $575 million was currently being implemented to improve rural access and agricultural marketing in participating states, while strengthening the financing institutional base for effective development, maintenance and management of rural roads network.
Abubakar reeled out names of the participating states to include Akwa Ibom, Bauchi, Kano, Katsina, Kogi, Kwara, Kebbi, Ogun, Ondo, Oyo, Plateau and Sokoto.
According to the Minister, government was also implementing the Value Chain Development Programme
Additional Financing (VCDP-AF) 2020- 2024 to enhance, on a sustainable basis, incomes and food security of poor rural households engaged in the production, processing and marketing of rice and cassava among others.
Continuing, he said the project is currently being implemented in nine states including Niger, Benue, Ogun, Ebonyi, Taraba and Anambra, Nasarawa, Kogi and Enugu “to scale up the achievement recorded in the original VCDP states.”
Fielding questions on the rising prices of food in the market despite several government interventions, Abubakar explained that the challenge was not peculiar to Nigeria, adding that the situation was a reflection of global economic value chain system.
Continuing, the Minister said Nigeria as a member of the international community was working out ways to manage the situation to in view of its own peculiarities.
“We released about 70,000MT(2,333) trucks of Assorted Food Commodities (AFC) approved by Mr. President to cushion the effect of COVID-19 pandemic, in 2020 to the vulnerable populace in the 36 States and FCT.
“This was followed by the release of 5,000MT of maize to Poultry Association of Nigeria (PAN) to stabilize the hike in price of maize in the open market and to ensure that PAN members remain in business, in 2020. Then there was also emergency release of 1,480MT of assorted food commodities to support IDPs in Kaduna and Katsina states in 2020.
“Currently releasing 40,000MT of assorted food commodities approved by Mr. President to the vulnerable populace, IDPs through Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Religious Bodies and Poultry Association of Nigeria (PAN) to cushion the effect of high price of food commodities, currently, the National Food Stock balance is 60,000MT of Assorted Food Commodities after the releases.”
On the impact of the war between Ukraine and Russia, the Agriculture Minister said though COVID-19 and insecurity in some parts of the country are posing threats to the agricultural sector, the short-term mitigation measures and medium term plans of the government are already yielding the desired results.
He explained that the Ministry was adopting a multi-stakeholder approach in designing and implementing its mandate; with enhanced private sector involvement in agriculture and sustained efforts to reduce drudgery and enhance value addition. Nigeria can deepen the production of its basic food requirements and create more jobs in the process.
“The success of any agricultural policy and interventions, however, rests on synergy among federal MDAs, and between federal, states and Local governments.
“Nigeria is not immune from the current situation in Europe. It is my hope that the recent agreement between UN, Turkey Russia, and Ukraine on the export of grains through the Black Sea Ports of Ukraine will lead to a drop in the price of grains in the international market, which will in turn ease the inflationary trend on the price of food in the country,”he noted.
The Minister also explained that about $35million dollars is being expected from the Mexican government following export of hibiscus flower used in the production of the popular zobo drink in Nigeria.
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Crude oil theft sabotaging Nigeria’s economy, says Uzodinma
Governor Hope Uzodinma of Imo says the continuos theft of crude oil in the country was a direct sabotage to Nigeria’s economy.
He said this after a closed-door meeting with the Managing Director,
Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC), Mr Osagie Okunbor in Abuja on Thursday.
Uzodinma who expressed concern over oil theft said that the stoppage of production by the company was due to insecurity which was not good for the economy.
He described the activities by the bunkers as a sabotage to the country’s effort at boosting the production of crude oil.
“We met with shell petroleum on the level of insecurity that made them shut down operation in Imo.
“They left because of insecurity. We have been able to sustain relative peace and decided to invite them and discuss very well.
“We are concerned about the crude oil theft in the region and we are doing our best as a government to support the producing oil company to have a very enabling environment to do their production so that Nigeria will benefit.”
The governor further explained that oil theft was was part of the reasons why foreign exchange rate had gone up very astronomically.
“So with what we have agreed now and by the time shell resumes production, and with our support in making sure that stealing of crude oil becomes a thing of the past, it will go a long way in ensuring that the Naira gains it real value and our capacity for earning foreign exchange is also further strengthened,” Uzodinma said.
He also noted that shell would resume operations and production in the state before the end of this week.
On the high exchange rate of a Dollar to Naira, Uzodinma said:”for you to have dollar cheap, you have to earn the dollar and the only way we earn the dollar is by producing enough crude oil.
“The reduction in the production rate of crude oil from 2.1 million barrels a day to barely 1 million barrels is a big blow to our economy and to our capacity in terms of foreign exchange earning.
“By the time we recover back to 2.1 million barrels a day, we will earn enough that will force down the dollar and give advantage to the naira.”
(NAN)
