The days of hunger in the land are numbered as Nigerians will soon begin to feel the impact of the Federal Government’s effort to revamp the agricultural sector, even on their dining tables.
Mr Lai Mohammed, who is the Minister of Information and Culture, gave the assurance on Monday while briefing reporters in Abuja.
“In fact, no government has invested in an agricultural revolution like the Buhari administration,” he stated. “They (critics) say ‘oh, but Nigerians are still hungry, and the price of the staples is still high’. Our response is that the impact of our agriculture revolution will soon be felt on dining tables across the country.”
The minister urged farmers to support the government’s drive in ensuring food sufficiency by shunning unnecessary export of farm produce in illegal manners.
He informed Nigerians that the government was not unmindful of the challenges in the various sectors of the country, including the economy, security, and power, among others.
New Nigeria
Mohammed, however, assured them that the government has risen stoutly to these problems by judiciously utilising the scarce resources at its disposal to make an impact.
“Nigerians are making great sacrifices because they know that today’s difficulties are like the pangs heralding the birth of a new baby,” he said. “Today’s pains won’t endure, but the new Nigeria that will emerge will surely do!
“We want to appeal to our farmers to be more patriotic by not allowing foreigners to buy their commodities at farm gates. They should reciprocate the support being given to them by the Federal Government by slowing down on exports in order to increase the supply of local staples and also reduce prices.”
The minister accused the opposition of frittering away the nation’s resources to import rice and other staples. He, however, said the present administration has worked progressively to ensure food security as a nation.
Rice production in Nigeria, according to him, has increased to over 7.5 million metric tons annually, thanks to the Anchor Borrowers Programme of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Nigerian Problem
Mohammed explained that before the programme, the average production in Nigeria between 1999 to 2015 was less than four million metric tons annually, and there were 15 standard rice mills before the programme was launched as against the 50 mills now spread across the country.
He added that more than 4.8 million smallholder farmers have so far been supported, with a resultant increase in the production of 23 agricultural commodities including maize, rice, oil palm, cocoa, cotton, cassava, tomato and livestock.
The minister also spoke about the increase in the prices of food items and fuel experienced in Nigeria, stressing that the situation was the same even in some developed countries.
He said, “The figures being bandied around by the folks on the other side and a section of the press, comparing the prices of some foodstuffs, petrol, diesel, etc pre-2015 and now; this misuse of statistics is clear mischief. Those who bandy around these figures without putting them in context are being clever by half.
“Let’s take the price of foodstuffs and petrol. Google the price of foodstuffs in other countries, especially the UK and the US, and you will discover a steep rise. Ditto for the price of gas or petrol. What we are saying is that this increase is a global trend, and it’s not limited to any country.
“Therefore, presenting it as a Nigerian problem is mischievous, disingenuous and a clear act of misinformation. Let me add that the crippling fuel shortage experienced across the country in recent times has started easing, as the measures put in place by the government begin to work.”
