Adesina criticizes suspension of import tax on food, says Agrar

• Makinde: It is a shame that we cannot feed ourselves

The President of the African Development Bank (AfDB), Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, criticised the federal government’s plan to drive up prices through massive imports of staple foodstuffs at the weekend and described the decision to suspend tariffs and taxes on imported food as “depressing”.

Last week, Minister of Agriculture and Food Security Abubakar Kyari said duties, tariffs and taxes on imports of maize, husked brown rice, wheat and cowpeas through Nigeria’s land and sea borders would be suspended for 180 days to mitigate the rise in food prices.

Speaking at a retreat in Abuja on the theme “Food Security and Financial Sustainability in Africa: The Role of the Church” organised by the African Primates of the Council of Anglican Provinces of Africa (CAPA), the AfDB boss, who was formerly Nigeria’s Minister of Agriculture, said the plan would only address the short-term rise in food prices in the country, adding that the policy could jeopardise the significant efforts and private investment in Nigeria’s agricultural sector.

“Nigeria’s recently announced policy of opening its borders to massive food imports just to deal with short-term food price increases is depressing. Nigeria cannot rely on importing food to stabilize prices. Nigeria should produce more food to stabilize food prices while creating jobs and reducing foreign exchange expenditure, which will help further stabilize the naira,” he said.

Adesina said Nigeria must not become a country dependent on food imports. “Nigeria cannot import its way out of food insecurity. Nigeria must proudly feed itself because a nation that depends on others to feed itself is independent in name only. This policy could undo all the hard work and private investment that has gone into Nigeria’s agricultural sector.”

Almost a third of the world’s more than 780 million hungry people live in Africa, said the AfDB president. Agriculture is crucial for the diversification of economies and the transformation of rural areas, where more than 70 percent of the African population lives.

“It is therefore clear that Africa cannot eradicate poverty unless we transform agriculture. Africa has 65 percent of the world’s remaining uncultivated arable land to feed 9.5 billion people by 2050. Therefore, Africa’s agriculture will determine the future of the world’s food supply,” he stressed.

In his opening remarks, the host, Primate of the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion), Most Reverend Henry C. Ndukuba, said the meeting was a unique opportunity for African Anglican leaders to deepen their bonds of friendship and cooperation and to share common knowledge and experiences.

Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State echoed the same sentiment, saying it was a shame that the country could not adequately feed its citizens despite its abundance of arable land. While saying the country was blessed with good weather, he stressed that Nigeria had no reason to import food.

“It is a great shame for this country that we cannot feed ourselves. We should refocus on the things that will enable us to restore the confidence of our people and ensure that this country gets back on the path of growth and economic progress,” he said.

Makinde said this when he received the national executive members of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) led by its President, Chris Iziguzo, at his office at the Secretariat in Agodi, Ibadan.