The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari, has raised alarm over the detrimental impact of food smuggling on Nigeria’s food availability, emphasizing the need for immediate action to address the issue.
Addressing the House of Representatives during a sectoral debate on agriculture and food security, Minister Kyari highlighted the severity of the situation. “We have seen smuggling of foodstuffs to other neighbouring countries. This has affected the availability of food items in the country,” he stated.
Accompanying Minister Kyari were other key officials, including the Minister of State (Agriculture and Food Security), Sabi Abdullahi, and the Comptroller General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Adewale Adeniyi.
Echoing Minister Kyari’s concerns, Adeniyi emphasized the urgent need to combat food scarcity. He disclosed that the Nigeria Customs Service has initiated measures to alleviate hunger by selling seized food items directly to vulnerable Nigerians. “President Bola Tinubu has directed that food items produced in Nigeria and seized at the Nigerian land borders be sold directly to vulnerable Nigerians to ease the challenge of hunger in the country,” Adeniyi revealed.
He further elaborated on the directives from the President, stating, “Mr. President has directed that we sell directly to needy Nigerians food items produced locally but which were seized. This is one of the ways to address hunger and food scarcity we are facing. We have started this in Lagos.”
Moreover, Adeniyi highlighted another facet of the initiative, explaining, “Also, the president has also directed that imported food items seized by the Nigeria Customs Service should be sold back to the local markets for resale to Nigerians.”