THE Federal Government of Nigeria’s tariff suspension on select food items such as rice, wheat, and cassava is a bold step but may not deliver a lasting solution to Nigeria’s food insecurity, agricultural experts have said.

The move is expected to prune down food inflation and improve the purchasing power of Nigerians, but some food experts said the government needs to secure the food belt and support agricultural productivity with improved yield variety to farmers.

“This is a knee-jerk approach to managing food inflation. The management of food inflation requires a multi-thronged approach to supporting farmers with single-digit facilities and securing their farmlands. The government must also support farmers with improved yield variety of seedlings for improved productivity. What the government has done is good, but they need to pay more attention to some teething problems,” a development economist, Celestine Okeke told The ICIR.

Nigerians have been struggling with high food prices and food inflation at 40.33 per cent.  This was worsened by insecurity in Nigeria’s food-belt and naira devaluation which kept worsening the food price hike.

Most food stuff sellers and restaurant managers have raised concerns over the constant rise in the prices of foodstuffs at each market day, which has made staple food now a luxury for an average Nigerian.

In what appeared to be a solution-oriented directive, the federal government approved a 150-day duty-free waver for rice, maize, and wheat to address rising food inflation in the country.

The minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari, made the approval announcement on Monday, July 8, hinting that the measure would be implemented over the next 180 days.

He said suspending the tariff on imported food items through both land and sea borders was part of implementing the Presidential Accelerated and Stabilisation Advancement Plan (ASAP).

“The Federal Government has announced a 150-day Duty-Free Import Window for Food Commodities, suspension of duties, tariffs and taxes for importing certain food commodities (through land and sea borders). These commodities include maize, husked brown rice, wheat, and cowpeas.

“Under this arrangement, imported food commodities will be subjected to a Recommended Retail Price (RRP).

“I am glad to reiterate that the Government’s position exemplifies standards that would not compromise the safety of the various food items for consumption,” Kyari was quoted to have said.

In addition to the importation by the private sector, the minister said the federal government would import 250,000 metric tonnes of wheat and maize each.

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

Commenting on the development, a director at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Abisola Adebowale Akande, said the research institute was like the Lagos government, building partnerships with other private agribusiness to see that the agric sector grows.

Akande said collaboration holds the key to Nigeria’s worsening food crisis, drawing examples from his work at the IITA where the research body now engages other private agribusinesses and uses technology to further enhance agricultural research.

The prices of foodstuffs have increased significantly above the reach of many Nigerians, The ICIR can report.

For instance, the price of 50 kilograms of rice peaked at around N90,000 this year compared to about N40,000 a year ago.

Food inflation in Nigeria rose to 40.66 per cent in May 2024 from 40.53. per cent in April, according to the latest data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

In the last year, food inflation has risen by 15.84 per cent from 24.82 per cent in May 2023, surging consistently on a month-on-month basis.

The upward movement in food inflation increases the average cost Nigerians spend on a healthy diet, among other things.

According to NBS data on the Cost of a Healthy Diet (CoHD), in May Nigerians spent N1,041 on average to eat a healthy diet, The ICIR reported.

Also, between May 2023 and May 2024, the average cost of eating a healthy meal has risen consistently as a result of the continued rise in headline inflation, food inflation, and cost of fuel, which affected the prices of transportation, increased monthly.

The ICIR had also analysed that Nigeria could crash the prices of food items and other products by an average of 18 per cent should the government suspend tariffs on certain consumables.