Economy
Prices of Food, Especially Rice, Will Eventually Fall—Buhari Assures Nigerians
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Nigerians have been urged to exercise some patience as the growing food production in the country, especially expansion in rice farming, will eventually bring down prices of food, making it more affordable for all.
This appeal was made by President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday at the commissioning of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)/Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria (RIFAN) Rice Paddy Pyramids at the Abuja International Trade Fair Complex.
Mr Buhari said the economic diversification policy of his administration, especially through agriculture, was yielding meaningful results as reflected in the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme (ABP) of the apex bank launched by him in 2015.
“As a critical policy of the government, the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme is expected to catalyse the agricultural productive base of the nation, which is a major part of our economic plan to uplift the economy, create jobs, reduce reliance on imported food and industrial raw materials, and conserve foreign exchange,” he said.
The President further said “our gathering here today is no doubt a testament to the fact that the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme is working.
“Indeed, these sky-high pyramids which we are gathered here to the commission are part of our commitment at achieving national food security and economic diversification through home-grown policies targeted at securing food for all Nigerians.”
According to him, across Nigeria, more than 4.8 million smallholder farmers have been supported by the scheme, with an increase in production of 23 agricultural commodities including maize, rice, oil palm, cocoa, cotton, cassava, tomato and livestock.
“Today, rice production in Nigeria has increased to over 7.5 million metric tons annually. Prior to the introduction of ABP, the average production in Nigeria between 1999 and 2015 was less than 4 metric tons annually.
“I am aware that the bags of paddy will be moving straight from here to rice milling plants across Nigeria, which will lead to the release of processed rice to the markets by the rice millers. The measure will aid our efforts at reducing the price of rice in Nigeria,” he stated.
Mr Buhari boasted that, “Before this administration launched the ABP, there were only 15 standard Rice mills in Nigeria. As at today, we have over 50 Standard and integrated Rice mills creating jobs and reducing unemployment. We expect additional significant output when two new mills are started in Lagos and Katsina.”
He said the large margins in the business of rice had also encouraged more people to show interest in investing in agribusiness, noting that “the improved rice seedlings have helped to ensure our achievement of rice sufficiency, as they are disease-resistant and have an average yield of about 5 metric tonnes per hectare, compared with the traditional national average of 1.5 metric tonnes.
“This has resulted in bridging our rice consumption gap, a significant reduction in rice imports, and saved us foreign exchange.”
President Buhari said the commissioning of the rice pyramids was an indication that the country was making steady and assured progress towards self-sufficiency in food production, adding that, “It is my desired hope and expectation that other agricultural commodity associations that are yet to participate under the ABP will emulate the Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria in supporting our administration’s drive for food self-sufficiency.”
He noted that about three years ago, the first set of sky-high pyramids of rice harvests was showcased in Argungu, Kebbi State, which was followed by another set in Minna, Niger State about a year ago and barely three months later in Zauro, Kebbi State, rice pyramids were, again, unveiled.
“Those events were historic as, first, they remind us of our yester-year’s agricultural commodity pyramids, such as the groundnut pyramids in Kano and secondly, they symbolize that we can produce what we eat.
“The significance of today’s occasion can be better understood by looking at the various economic strides the administration has achieved through agriculture.
“When we assumed the reins of leadership of this country in 2015, the administration identified the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme as an essential policy instrument for achieving economic diversification through agriculture.
“To achieve this, the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme was designed to encourage investments in agriculture and empower smallholder farmers as drivers of transformation in the agricultural sector and as critical enablers of economic growth.
“I am indeed delighted that the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme continues to receive commendations, since its introduction six years ago, as it has become one of the reference points in the administration’s agricultural revolution effort.
“In fact, the Programme speaks loudly in its giant strides as it has increased access to finance by our rural farmers, who before now were virtually excluded from the financial system,” he said.
Mr Buhari commended the CBN and the Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele for efforts at resuscitating the Nigerian Commodity Exchange following approval to do so.
“Let me also commend the Governor and staff of the Central Bank of Nigeria, as well as the leadership of the Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria for the successful delivery of these pyramids, which hopefully is just the first of many that will be unveiled this year across Nigeria,” he said.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
An oil marketer, Mr Abubakar Maigandi, has warned that premium motor spirit (PMS), otherwise known as petrol, may again become a scarce commodity in Nigeria because the country has not imported the product for a while.
Mr Maigandi, who is the vice president of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), said this to The Nation over the weekend.
The price of petrol at the retail stations surged to N488 per litre in Lagos and over N500 per litre in other parts of the country after President Bola Tinubu declared on May 29, 2023, that “fuel subsidy is gone” because it was draining the nation’s resources.
Speaking with The Nation, the oil marketer said though the low demand for fuel has reduced in the past week because of the low purchasing power of consumers, the product may not be available in the coming weeks unless marketers bring in petrol from abroad, urging importers to hasten the supply, noting that there has been no fresh stocking since the removal of subsidy.
Mr Maigandi said vessels of petrol might arrive in July but warned the suppliers not to allow their stock to dry up at any time.
“Nobody has imported petrol since the removal of subsidy; even NNPC did not import.
“We are all using the old stock. But I know probably this month, there will be new stock. If not, it may create scarcity.
“The government should not allow the fuel to get scarce. They should ensure they bring new stock. That is what we are expecting,” the IPMAN executive member said.
He also said due to the low demand for petrol, private depots have cut the price of the product to N495 per litre from N502 per litre.
The businessman said private depots are “reducing the price compared to last week. They are selling at the rate of N495 to N496/ litre. You know it reached N502 to N503/litre.
“In Lagos, most of the depots in Lagos that is what they are selling. NNPC is maintaining its old rate of N479.6/litre. Sales are low because people, especially the civil servants, are complaining there is no money.”
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange recorded a marginal drop of 0.02 per cent on the last trading day of this week, Friday, June 30.
Upon the resumption of the market yesterday, following Wednesday and Thursday’s hiatus due to the Eid-el-Kabir holiday, the OTC stock exchange witnessed a significant increase in trading activities.
The volume of securities traded at the bourse during the session surged by 24,638.3 per cent to 1.08 billion units from the 4.4 million units transacted in the preceding session.
Also, the value of shares traded at the session rose by 4,045.5 per cent to N21.1 billion from the N509.0 million posted on Tuesday, as the number of deals increased by 30 per cent to 26 deals from the 20 deals carried out in the previous trading session.
However, the NASD Unlisted Securities Index (NSI) dropped 0.21 points to wrap the session at 752.03 points compared with 752.24 points in the previous session, while a total of N290 million was sliced from the market capitalisation of the bourse, closing at N1.040 trillion, in contrast to Tuesday’s closing value of N1.041 trillion.
The day’s single price loser was NASD Plc, and it fell by N1.55 to close at N13.95 per unit compared with its previous closing value of N15.50 per unit.
But Niger Delta Exploration and Production (NDEP) Plc appreciated by 37 Kobo to end the day at N275.50 per share versus N275.13 per share, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc gained 6 Kobo to trade at N69.98 per unit versus N69.92 per unit, and UBN Property Plc chalked up 5 Kobo to sell at N1.00 per share versus 95 Kobo per share.
Yesterday, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc took over the activity chart when it finished as the most traded stock by volume (year-to-date) with the sale of 2.2 billion units valued at N42.3 billion, followed by Geo-Fluids Plc with 842.5 million units valued at N1.3 billion, and Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc with 630.1 units worth N49.6 million.
Also, CSCS Plc finished as the most traded stock by value (year-to-date) with 2.2 billion units worth N42.3 billion, followed by VFD Group Plc with 19.4 million units valued at N4.4 billion, and Geo-Fluids Plc with 842.5 million units worth N1.3 billion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira closed the last trading day of the week on a weaker note in the Investors and Exporters (I&E) window of the foreign exchange market on Friday, June 30, the first session since Tuesday after the Sallah holiday break.
With the return of the market, there was a slight rush for the greenback as the Naira lost 0.82 per cent or N6.25 to close at N769.25/$1 versus last Tuesday’s value of N763/$1.
Data obtained by Business Post from FMDQ Securities Exchange showed that the local was under FX demand pressure as the turnover for the day remained high.
Transactions worth $263.45 million were executed in the official market yesterday, 7.2 per cent or $17.80 million higher than the $245.65 million carried out on Tuesday.
Also, in the parallel market, the Nigerian currency depreciated against the United States Dollar on Friday by N1 to quote at N771/$1 compared with Thursday’s exchange rate of N770/$1.
However, in the Peer-2-Peer (P2P) window, where trading also continued during the holidays like the black market, the domestic currency appreciated yesterday by N2.60 to sell at N768.00/$1 versus the previous day’s N770.60/$1.
A look at the exchange rate of the Naira to the Pound Sterling in the spot market showed that it weakened by N9.78 to close at N968.34/£1 versus N958.56/£1 and lost N9.41 against the Euro to trade at N831.88/€1 compared with the preceding session’s N822.47/€1.
The cryptocurrency market continued its moderate momentum yesterday ahead of the anticipated consumer sentiment report from the United States, which is expected to show an increase in overall consumer confidence.
The US Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 4 per cent in the 12 months through May, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) said Wednesday.
Bitcoin (BTC) lost 1.8 per cent to close at $30,390.48, Solana (SOL) depreciated by 3.9 per cent to $18.02, Ripple (XRP) recorded a 2.2 per cent slide to trade at $0.4692 and Cardano (ADA) slid by 0.6 per cent to $0.2838.
However, Ethereum (ETH) went up by 1.3 per cent to $1,915.31, Litecoin (LTC) grew by 10.9 per cent to $106.25, Dogecoin (DOGE) expanded by 5.5 per cent to $0.0689, Binance Coin (BNB) jumped 1.0 per cent to $241.12, and the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and Binance USD (BUSD) remained unchanged at $1.00 each.