Fidelia Akuabata Njeze, disclosed the country
loses about N1 billion every-day from importation of rice, even as it assured
that Nigeria will soon stop importing the grains. The discussion was held at a one-day
stakeholders’ forum on the establishment of the Nigeria/ECOWAS rice sector
policy and regulation advocacy platform, in Abuja.
She added that due to the
importation of rice, Nigeria had been exporting jobs and financial resources
for the transformation of the domestic rice sector in the country. Speaking in
similar vein, Ministry of Agriculture, Dr. Akinwunmi Adesina, also assured that
“Nigeria is already at exit door from importation.” The minister said this when
he inspected the 420 hectares of rice farm and mill owned by Olam Nigeria
Limited in Rubuki near Doma, Nasarawa State. He said 2.9 million metric tonnes
of high quality milled rice was expected to be produced from the farm starting
from the next farming season.
The minister noted that
with the importation of about two million metric tonnes of rice per annum, the
issue of rice import will soon stop. “We are going to be the Thailand of Africa
in terms of rice production and export,” Adesina said The minister also said no
fewer than 670 jobs were created in 2013 through rice production. He disclosed
that 1.9 million metric tonnes of rice was produced in the 2013 dry and wet
seasons thereby contributing N320 billion to the Gross Domestic Product, GDP.
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