The Federal Government has distributed 20 trucks of rice each to Nigeria’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, as part of measures to address the country’s food shortage. This was announced by the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, following Monday’s Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting.
Minister Idris emphasized that this distribution is the first step in the government’s efforts to combat food scarcity. He urged the governors to ensure the effective distribution of the grains to the most vulnerable segments of society.
Meanwhile, Nigeria’s inflation rate has surged to a new high of 34.19% for June 2024, according to the latest data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). The rise in food inflation for June 2024 was notable compared to May 2024.
“On a month-on-month basis, the Food inflation rate in June 2024 was 2.55% which shows a 0.26% increase compared to the rate recorded in May 2024 (2.28%),” the NBS report stated. The NBS attributed this hike to the rising average prices of food items such as groundnut oil, palm oil, water yam, cocoyam, cassava, tobacco, catfish, croaker, mudfish, and snail.
Minister Idris detailed the rice distribution initiative during his briefing with State House reporters. “Each of the trucks, of course, is carrying about 1,200 25kg bags of rice,” he explained. “This is part of the measures that the government is taking in addition to so many others to ensure that the hardship being experienced by Nigerians is drastically ameliorated.”
He reiterated that the rice is intended for the most vulnerable Nigerians, distributed by the state governments. “Each of the state governments has received 20 trucks of rice for onward distribution to the most vulnerable. This is a first step, and the federal government will continue to support all the state governors and local governments, all the subnationals so that the hardship being experienced by most Nigerians in terms of shortage of food supply is breached,” he said.
Since President Bola Tinubu announced the removal of petrol subsidies last year, Nigerians have been grappling with a cost-of-living crisis. The price of basic foods has tripled in some cases, with a 50-kg bag of rice rising from about N20,000 to over N60,000.
The rice distribution announcement follows the government’s recent approval of the duty-free importation of major food items like rice, beans, and wheat. Minister Idris emphasized that this move is a first step towards addressing food inflation and supporting all state and local governments.
“It is expected that the state governors will go ahead and distribute this food item to the most vulnerable. So that the hardship, as I said, that has been experienced will be brought down significantly,” he said.
He also recalled that the Central Bank of Nigeria had earlier provided over 2.1 million bags of assorted fertilizer to the Ministry of Agriculture for distribution to the states, which is still in progress. The federal government, he assured, is committed to ensuring that Nigerians have sufficient food.
“Investments in the agricultural sector are ramped up, and you also know that the Federal Ministry of Livestock Development that was announced by Mr. President, will also take off very soon,” Minister Idris added.
