The Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria (RIFAN), Lagos State Chapter, has blamed unscrupulous elements for frustrating the cultivation of local rice.
The RIFAN Chairman, Mr Raphael Hunsa, who disclosed this in an interview on Sunday in Lagos, spoke against the backdrop of the recent hike in the price of rice.
“We really need God to have mercy on our country Nigeria, the Federal Government is trying its possible best but some fellows are hell-bent in frustrating the existence of local rice.
“They know that if local rice exists and thrives, they will be no more importation of foreign rice or indiscriminate increase of the produce.
“With this current hike in the price of rice, we want the Federal Government not to relent on its efforts, they should continue to support and empower local farmers, one day we will get there, in achieving price stability.
“We also want to urge the government, that in the provision of inputs or machinery for farmers, let it come directly to the farmers and not diverted to political farmers.
“If it comes to the farmers direct, proper monitoring will be assured,” Hunsa told NAN in the interview.
He urged commodity heads not to collide with unscrupulous persons in destroying the economy.
“We also want commodity heads to know that the government is trying, they should not collide with unscrupulous persons to destroy our economy.
“If the government continues intervening in the sector, the price of rice will be stabilised,” he said.
On his part, the Chairman Southwest and Lagos State chapter of the All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Mr Femi Oke, called on the Federal Government to involve the farmers’ associations in its policy decisions.
“The price of rice went down for a while because there was tax exemption for its importation by the Federal Government for about six months.
“So, the subsidy period is over now, hence the current hike in the price of the produce.
“However, in making decisions like this, the government should get the farmers’ associations involved. They should ask what we really want because the tax exemption lasted for a while but did not solve the price issue.
“If we are not brought on board, we may not get it right, we are the stakeholders in the sector and the government should involve us in its policy decisions.
“So, to get the price of rice stable, the government needs to liaise with stakeholders like AFAN,” Oke said.
He called for the empowerment of local farmers with inputs to boost rice production in the country.
“The waiver on tax for the importation of rice is not the solution, the government needs to empower local farmers.
“Rice is like a staple food in Nigeria, there is no household that is not taking the rice. If I am not mistaken, if the father or mother is not taking rice, the children will surely take it. So we should keep all hands on deck to stabilise the price of rice.
“Let us utilise our arable lands and cultivate more rice for the populace, we should not just concentrate on building houses and forget cultivation,” he said.
A 50kg bag of rice sold between N52,000 and N55,000 depending on its species from second quarter in 2025 till last month.
However, the same quantity sells between N75,000 and N85,000 depending on the species at the moment.
Local annual rice production capacity is estimated at 8.44 million tonnes, while Nigeria also imports about two million metric tonnes of rice annually, making it one of the largest rice importers globally.