The government of Niger State is planning towards pegging the prices of food items to curb food inflation as a bill for a Price Control Board passes its first reading in the north-central state.
This is coming on the heels of the recent ruling by a high court in Lagos ordering the federal government to fix the prices of essential goods and services in the country in the next seven days.
The bill which was presented during plenary on Thursday was sponsored by ISA Etsugaie (APC-Agaie).
Niger State currently battles with a 29.43% year-on-year food inflation according to the National Bureau of Statistics, with about 4.5% lower than the national average which currently stands at 33.93% as of December 2023.
Meanwhile, the bill is set to address the soaring rise in food prices and other essential commodities that is affected by external factors such as insecurity and climate change, among others.
According to the lawmaker, the Price Control Board will maintain constant oversight of prices, analyzing their fluctuations and correlating them with other economic factors in the state.
Additionally, Etsugaie mentioned that the board would oversee the distribution methods of essential goods and monitor the operations of the state supply company along with other commercial entities.
The lawmaker said the board would help to keep prices under continuous surveillance, interpret price movements and relate them to other developments in the state economy.
The bill was, thereafter, adopted by the House and passed through the first reading.
What you should know
- Nigeria currently faces a soaring price in food inflation. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, Nigeria’s food inflation is 33.93% as of December 2023, the highest it has been in almost a decade.
- This rise in the prices of food items has prompted the federal government to declare a state of emergency on food security in the country. Also, the minister of information, Mohammed Idris, noted that the government has decided to open the National Food Reserves as part of the measures to crash food prices.
- Meanwhile, human rights lawyer and activist, Femi Falana, SAN, took the federal government to court regarding the challenges of rising food prices in the market.
- The high court in Lagos on Wednesday, February 7, ordered the government to fix the prices of goods and petroleum products within 7 days.
