Abuja, July 13, 2023: President Bola Tinubu has ordered immediate action to stem rising food prices and ensure sustainable food security in the country.
At a briefing on Thursday in Abuja by Mr Dele Alake, Presidential Adviser on Special Duties, Communications and Strategy, Tinubu said the interventions were meant to have immediate impact on the most vulnerable Nigerians.
“As a hands-on- leader who follows developments across the country everyday, Mr. President is not unmindful of the rising cost of food and how it affects the citizens. While availability is not a problem, affordability has been a major issue to many Nigerians in all parts of the country.
“This has led to a significant drop in demand thereby undermining the viability of the entire agriculture and food value chain.”
To contain this trend, the President announced the declaration of a state of emergency on food security, and other measures.
He said all matters pertaining to food and water availability and affordability, now fall within the purview of the National Security Council.
The president said other iniiatives would be deployed in the coming weeks to reverse the inflationary trend and guarantee future uninterrupted supplies of affordable foods to ordinary Nigerians.
“As with most emergencies, there are immediate, medium- and long-term interventions and solutions.
“In the immediate term, we intend to deploy some savings from the fuel subsidy removal into the Agricultural sector focusing on revamping the agricultural sector.”
He said that a Memorandum of Partnership between the government and agricultural stakeholders had been drafted, containing decisions taken and proposed actions.
“We will immediately release fertilizers and grains to farmers and households to mitigate the effects of the subsidy removal.
“There must be an urgent synergy between the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Water Resources to ensure adequate irrigation of farmlands and to guarantee that food is produced all-year round.”
He said that the country could no longer rely on seasonal farming for affordable food items.
“We shall create and support a National Commodity Board that will review and continuously assess food prices as well as maintain a strategic food reserve that will be used as a price stabilisation mechanism for critical grains and other food items.
“Through this board, government will moderate spikes and dips in food prices.”
The president added that to achieve these objectives stakeholders have been drafted to support the interventions.
The stakeholders include National Commodity Exchange, Seed Companies, National Seed Council and Research institutes and NIRSAL Microfinance Bank.
Others are, Food Processing/ Agric Processing associations, private sector holders and Prime Anchors, smallholder farmers, crop associations and fertilizer producers, blenders and suppliers associations.
“In furtherance of this, the federal government would engage security architecture to protect the farms and the farmers so that farmers can return to the farmlands without fear of attacks.
“The Central Bank will continue to play a major role of funding the agricultural value chain.”
Tinubu said that the government would activate its land banks to enable more Nigerians return to farming.
“There is currently 500,000 hectares of already mapped land that will be used to increase availability of arable land for farming which will immediately impact food output.”
He added that the “government will also collaborate with mechanization companies to clear more forests and make them available for farming
“There are currently 11 rivers basins that will ensure planting of crops during the dry season with irrigation schemes that will guarantee continuous farming production all year round, to stem the seasonal glut and scarcity that we usually experience.
“We will deploy concessionary capital/funding to the sector especially towards fertilizer, processing, mechanization, seeds, chemicals, equipment, feed, labour, etc.
“The concessionary funds will ensure food is always available and affordable thereby having a direct impact on Nigeria’s Human Capital Index (HCI).
“This administration is focused on ensuring the HCI numbers, which currently ranks as the 3rd lowest in the world, are improved for increased productivity.”
The President further said that the government would explore other means of transportation including rail and water transport, to reduce freight cost, thereby impacting food prices.
“The cost of transporting Agricultural products has been a major challenge due to permits, toll gates, and other associated costs.
“When the costs of moving farm produce is significantly impacted, it will immediately be passed to the consumers, which will affect the price of food.”
He added that existing warehouses and tanks would be revamped to cut waste and ensure efficient preservation of food items.
Tinubu also pledged to increase revenue from food and agricultural exports.
“As we ensure there is sufficient, affordable food for the populace, we will concurrently work on stimulating the export capacity of the Agric sector.”
He said to enhance trade facilitation, transportation, storage and export will be improved by working with the Nigeria Customs Service.
According to him, the customs service has assured the government that the bottlenecks being experienced in exporting and importing food items as well as intra-city transportation through tolling will be removed.
The President stressed that the measures would bring about positive outcomes through massive boost in employment and job creation.
“Indeed, agriculture already accounts for about 35.21 per cent of employment in Nigeria (as at 2021), the target is to double this percentage to about 70 per cent in the long term.”
He said that this would be in line with his pledge to create jobs, as the initiative is expected to achieve between five to 10 million more jobs created within the value chain.
The jobs he said would come through working with the current 500,000 hectares of arable land and the several hundreds of thousands more farmlands to be developed in the medium term.
The president therefore called on all Nigerians to partner with the government to ensure the success of tthe trategic intervention.
“This administration is working assiduously to ensure that Nigerians do not struggle with their essential needs,” he added.
Tinubu assured Nigerians that the administration would not relent in its efforts “until all strategic interventions are deployed efficiently and effectively and until every household is positively impacted”.
PRESIDENTIAL INTERVENTION ON FOOD SECURITY, FOOD PRICING & SUSTAINABILITY
13th July 2023
TEXT OF MEDIA BRIEFING BY MR. DELE ALAKE, SPECIAL ADVISER TO THE PRESIDENT ON SPECIAL DUTIES, COMMUNICATIONS AND STRATEGY ON THE DETAILS OF PRESIDENTIAL INTERVENTION ON FOOD SECURITY, FOOD PRICING & SUSTAINABILITY ON THURSDAY, JULY 13, 2023
Gentlemen of the press, i welcome you once again to this press conference to update the public on President Bola Tinubu-led administration’s immediate response to the current food inflation in the country.
As a hands-on- leader who follows developments across the country everyday, Mr. President is not unmindful of the rising cost of food and how it affects the citizens. While availability is not a problem, affordability has been a major issue to many Nigerians in all parts of the country. This has led a significant drop in demand thereby undermining the viability of the entire agriculture and food value chain.
Accordingly, in line with this administration’s position on ensuring that the most vulnerable are supported, Mr. President has declared, with immediate effect the following actions:
• That a state of emergency on food security be announced immediately, and
• That all matters pertaining to food & water availability and affordability, as essential livelihood items, be included within the purview of the National Security Council.
As a direct and immediate response to this crisis, a number of initiatives will be deployed in the coming weeks to reverse this inflationary trend and guarantee future uninterrupted supplies of affordable foods to ordinary Nigerians.
As with most emergencies, there are immediate, medium- and long-term interventions and solutions.
In the immediate term, we intend to deploy some savings from the fuel subsidy removal into the Agricultural sector focusing on revamping the agricultural sector.
In an earlier meeting with Agriculture Stakeholders (today), we drafted a memorandum of partnership between the government and the individual stakeholder representatives that encompasses the decisions taken and actions proposed from our engagements.
The immediate intervention strategies are as follows:
1. We will immediately release fertilizers and grains to farmers and households to mitigate the effects of the subsidy removal.
2. There must be an urgent synergy between the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Water Resources to ensure adequate irrigation of farmlands and to guarantee that food is produced all-year round.
As a country, Mr. President has made it clear that we can no be comfortable with seasonal farming. We can no longer afford to have farming down times.
3. We shall create and support a National Commodity Board that will review and continuously assess food prices as well as maintain a strategic food reserve that will be used as a price stabilisation mechanism for critical grains and other food items.
Through this board, government will moderate spikes and dips in food prices.
To achieve this, we have the following stakeholders on board to support the intervention effort of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu: The National Commodity Exchange (NCX), Seed Companies, National Seed Council and Research institutes, NIRSAL Microfinance Bank, Food Processing/ Agric Processing associations, private sector holders & Prime Anchors, small holder farmers, crop associations and Fertilizer producers, blenders and suppliers associations to mention a few.
4. We will engage our security architecture to protect the farms and the farmers so that farmers can return to the farmlands without fear of attacks.
5. The Central Bank will continue to play a major role of funding the agricultural value chain.
6. Activation of land banks. There is currently 500,000 hectares of already mapped land that will be used to increase availability of arable land for farming which will immediately impact food output.
– Mechanization and land clearing- The government will also collaborate with mechanization companies to clear more forests & make them available for farming
7. River basins- there are currently 11 rivers basins that will ensure planting of crops during the dry season with irrigation schemes that will guarantee continuous farming production all year round, to stem the seasonal glut and scarcity that we usually experience.
8. We will deploy concessionary capital/funding to the sector especially towards fertilizer, processing, mechanization, seeds, chemicals, equipment, feed, labour, etc.
The concessionary funds will ensure food is always available and affordable thereby having a direct impact on Nigeria’s Human Capital Index (HCI). This administration is focused on ensuring the HCI numbers, which currently ranks as the 3rd lowest in the world, are improved for increased productivity.
9. Transportation and Storage: The cost of transporting Agricultural products has been a major challenge (due to permits, toll gates, and other associated costs). When the costs of moving farm produce is significantly impacted- it will immediately be passed to the consumers, which will affect the price of food- the government will explore other means of transportation including rail and water transport, to reduce freight costs and in turn impact the food prices.
As for storage, existing warehouses and tanks will be revamped to cut waste & ensure efficient preservation of food items.
10. We will Increase revenue from food and agricultural exports. As we ensure there is sufficient, affordable food for the populace, we will concurrently work on stimulating the export capacity of the Agric sector.
11. Trade Facilitation: Transportation, storage and export will be improved by working with the Nigerian Customs, who have assured us that the bottlenecks experienced in exporting and importing food items as well as intra-city transportation through tolling will be removed.
These are some of the immediate interventions this government will put in place to tackle this crisis.
Principally, one of the major positive outcomes of these interventions will be a massive boost in employment and job creation.
Indeed, agriculture already accounts for about 35.21 percent of employment in Nigeria (as at 2021), the target is to double this percentage to about 70% in the long term.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s mandate to create jobs for our teeming youth population will be achieved with between 5 to 10 million more jobs created within the value chain, working with the current 500,000 hectares of arable land and the several hundreds of thousands more farmlands to be developed in the medium term.
In closing, this administration understands that food and water are the bedrock of survival and therefore is calling on all Nigerians to partner us in ensuring the success of this strategic intervention. This administration is working assiduously to ensure that Nigerians do not struggle with their essential needs.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu wishes to use this medium to continue to assure Nigerians that this administration will not relent in its efforts until all strategic interventions are deployed efficiently and effectively and until every household is positively impacted. Our president is the president of all Nigerians and the father of the nation. The renewed hope mandate remains alive and no one, absolutely no one, will be left behind.
I thank you all.
