The Federal Government has promised to intensify efforts to increase food production in order to tackle inflation of prices of food commodities in the country.
Mr. Wale Edun, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, made this remark at the Nigerian delegation’s wrap-up press briefing.
During the 2024 IMF/World Bank Annual Meetings in Washington DC, Sunday, the Minister stated that the government is focusing on collecting the wet season harvest and identifying small-scale farmers to ensure a good dry season harvest.
In his own remarks, Mohammed Manga, Director, Information and Public Relations said in a statement late Sunday night that the Minister stated further that efforts were being intensified to increase food production in the country and that with better harvests, the inflation rate would fall.
“One of the key things that we are focusing on at this particular time is ensuring that we dutifully collect the wet season harvest, which is underway at the moment.
“In addition, we have diligently identified the small-scale farmers to ensure we have a good dry season harvest, which will lead to increased outputs of food, increased availability and increased affordability,” Edun said.
He added that “We need to remember that food represents 50 percent of the Consumer Price index.
“So, success in this area will help to drive down inflation in addition to all the other measures that the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, using data, using evidence-based information to fight inflation is implementing.
“When you put all that together, it will go well to fight the rate of inflation, which will automatically line things up, as we have seen from the examples of advanced countries.”
According to Edun, 600, 000 farmers were being assisted by the Federal Government to farm about 1 million hectares in November for planting wheat, as well as, in January and February when they would plant rice.
Speaking also was the Senate Inter-Parliamentary Committee Chairman, Senator Jimoh Ibrahim, who advocated the need for the Federal Government to issue poor Nigerians with Food Vouchers, as a means of tackling hunger in the nation.
Food Vouchers, Senator Ibrahim said, would be more effective in addressing the food supply challenges of poor Nigerians than the current Cash Transfers initiative of the present administration.