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SAMPSON ENYONGEKERE, UYO
Following the subsisting difficulties with food and victuals, encountered by Nigerians, an Adjunct Professor of the North Dakota University, USA, Engr. (Dr) Wisdom Patrick Enang has commended the federal government’s approval of a total sum of N2 trillion to tackle food inflation and actualize accelerated stabilization and advancement of the scheme.
The globally revered energy expert further commended the federal government for equally approving a 150-day duty free import window for the importation of certain food commodities via the land and sea borders subsumed within the program.
Speaking with newsmen in his Uyo office on Friday, July 19, Dr. Enang outlined the implementation imperatives of the Presidential Accelerated Stabilization and Advancement Plan, an initiative of President Bola Tinubu intended to bring about food security and economic stability.
The astute scholar further noted that over the past several months, Nigerians have witnessed escalating cost of food items in all parts of the country.
He also recalled that the affordability crisis in our nation’s food security system had been indexed by data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), which by the last count, had put food inflation at 40.66%. The globally respected public affairs analyst equally bemoaned the excessive hike in the prices of common items such as yam, plantain, rice and potatoes in recent times.
The Akwa Ibom born, British trained Chartered Engineer who is fully registered with, and accredited by the British Engineering Council (BEC) explained that the 150-day duty free import window for food commodities include suspension of duties, tariffs and taxes for the importation of maize, husked brown rice, wheat and cowpeas.
Dr. Wisdom Enang stressed that under the arrangement, imported food commodities will be subjected to a Recommended Retail Price (RRP).
He also highlighted that the federal government intends to import 250,000MT of Wheat and 250,000MT of Maize.
Expatiating further, the winner of Africa’s Most Promising Engineer Award at the Africa Energy Summit 2024 enunciated other planned interventions by the federal government to make food commodities available at reduced prices, including: plans to release 42,000 MT of assorted food commodities from the National Strategic Food Reserve; as well as plans to purchase 58,500MT of milled rice from Rice Processors Association of Nigeria.
While reaffirming the federal government’s promise to engage relevant stakeholders to set a Guaranteed Minimum Price (GMP) for some food items, and mop up surplus assorted food commodities to restock the National Strategic Food Reserve, as well as continue to ramp-up production for the 2024/2025 farming cycle, Dr. Enang harped on the need to sustain such efforts and initiatives over a long-term period.
Other efforts by the federal government he revealed will include development of a strategic engagement for youth and women across the federation for immediate cultivation of horticultural crops such as tomatoes and pepper to increase production volume.
Speaking further, Dr. Wisdom Enang, a Fellow of both the Nigerian Society of Engineers (FNSE) and the Nigerian Institution of Safety Engineers (FNISafetyE) equally expressed optimism in the Renewed Hope Livestock Transformation Implementation Committee which was inaugurated on Tuesday, July 9, 2024 to develop and implement policies that will prioritize livestock expansion.
In the same vein, the indefatigable go-getter also assured of Mr. President’s commitment to attaining food security in Nigeria.
“There is no doubt that food inflation is a direct consequence of a number of factors which must be decisively addressed by the government. Agricultural production activities have been hampered in some parts of the country by a number of factors resulting in the inability of small-scale farmers to contribute optimally to the nation’s food basket. This has inevitably exerted negative impacts on food accessibility, availability and affordability”, Dr. Enang opined.
