FG inaugurates task force on rising cost of food items
A food market in Lagos, Nigeria.
The Federal Government has approved the setting up of a Task Force to address the rising cost of food items across the country.
The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed stated this while briefing State House correspondents along side with Minister of Finance Kemi Adeosun and Minister of State for Aviation Hadi Sirika.
The meeting, which was held at the Council Chamber of the Presidential Villa, Abuja, was presided over by the acting President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo.
According to him, the government is concerned about the exorbitant prices of the food items and is determined to do something urgently to reverse the trend. He stated that members of the task force were the ministers of agriculture, finance, water resources, transportation.
“The major highlight council resolved to set up task force on food security. Government is quite concerned about the rising cost of food items and the fact that more often than not even when these products are available, if it does reach the market, they are sold at very exorbitant prices.
“So, the government has set up task force on food security to ensure that an end is put to the wastage that occur and with tons and tons of produce sitting down in the farms rotting or in the markets getting rotting.
Mohammed said the task force, which was given one week to submit its interim report, would suggest areas of intervention by the government.
He maintained that the intervention could be in the area of subsidy in transportation.
This is being worked out but this goes to show that government is very much concerned about the rising cost of food price and we are responding to it.
“The committee, hopefully, is expected to report back to council next week and concrete actions would be taken.
In his contribution, the Minister of State for Aviation, Sen. Hadi Sirika, disclosed that the council approved the procurement of 10 new coaches to boost rail transportation on the Abuja Kaduna standard gauge railway.
He expressed the hope that the new coaches would enhance transportation of passengers and goods following the impending closure of the Abuja airport.
The minister announced that the council also approved the construction of joint briefing offices in all 21 Federal Government’s airports across the country.
“The joint briefing offices will include the air automation and will co-locate the track-up projects, the total radar coverage, the air automation system, which include the air automation system and the pilot briefing offices.’’
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5 Comments
This is the problem with this administration, they have no clue what to do and when they do it, they do the more complicated and wrong policies. our agricultural sector along with food require more investment. we need to grow more food, we need to store them, process them and transport them. This is the reason we need commodity boards or market, they would ensure that food is store properly, they are transported to where needed, they would open up new market, ensure processing and enhance prices for farmer. we don’t need any task force, we need major action.
Nigeria doesn’t need government commodity boards. That’s a recipe for disaster.
Nigerian agriculture needs investment. Nigeria needs private land ownership and measures that will attract investors to the sector such as deregulation of the forex market.
An efficient and floating value for the naira will encourage exports and discourage imports. Just for example, imagine what will happen if the naira trades at something like 1000/$…..farmers will be rushing to grow cash crops in order to earn dollars.
That’s market economics for you.
So the task force will ‘force’ down prices of goods I suppose? Where on earth is it the norm to set up a task force to address the issue of exhorbitant food prices? Clueless regime. Shame of a nation!
APC government is a government of trials and errors. Let government be fundamental and not adhoc in advancing solutions to economic problems, Who went to the market to force the prices of foods down between 2010 and 2015? To make the ministers of Agriculture, finance, water resources and transportation members of the Tax Force is laughable. It shows that APC has become barren of ideas on how to turn the economic fortunes of Nigeria around. These ministers have been made touts and thugs to move into the market and be harassing traders who are selling according to how they bought. Which committee was set to go and force dollar down? Maybe the minister of finance?
Does it mean that the APC government does not know the reasons why the prices of fuel, gas, kerosene, foods and almost every commodity product, including pure water sachet, paper bags, sugar, salt, etc. sharply rose up and now rising on daily bases? They are padding a canoe whose direction they don’t know and they don’t know how to resign. They simply brought economic woes to the country and many have died of sickness, of poverty and of hunger. And many of those alife have turned to beggars. Everyday, you see well dressed Nigerians begging for transport money and food money on the streets. Big shame to the APC government.
We will review and take appropriate action.