The Comptroller General of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Bashir Adeniyi, has announced that the service will begin implementing the duty waiver on imported specific food crops within a week.
This follows the federal government’s approval in July of a 150-day duty-free window to facilitate the importation of maize, husked brown rice, and wheat as part of measures to address the escalating food inflation in the country.
Adeniyi made this announcement on Tuesday in Abuja during a joint press conference with heads of security agencies and Service Chiefs, convened by the Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Christopher Musa, at the Defence Headquarters.
He mentioned that the Ministry of Finance is finalizing the guidelines to ensure careful execution, balancing the interests of local farmers with the need to control inflation.
“One of the things that the President has done is to reduce the cost, to push on the effects of the cost inflation by suspending customs duties and taxes on imported food items for a period of time.
“We believe that when this is implemented, it will help to bring down the price of food items in the market,” the Comptroller-General said.
He added: “But I also like to remind Nigerians that we need to be very, very careful in implementation of this and this is why the guidelines for implementation is being meticulously worked out at the Ministry of Finance,” he said.
“There is the issue of striking a balance between the long term interest of Nigerian farmers and stakeholders who are involved in the production of these items and the short term interest of addressing food inflation.
“So the guidelines are being worked out at the Ministry of Finance and I can assure you that within the next one week these guidelines will be ready and Nigeria customs will begin implementation of these particular fiscal policies.”
Adeniyi emphasized that the temporary duty waiver is a critical step towards stabilizing food prices and alleviating the financial burden on Nigerian consumers.
What you should know
To combat rising food inflation, the federal government approved a 150-day duty-free window in July for importing maize, husked brown rice, and wheat, and will import 250,000 metric tonnes of wheat and maize to replenish the strategic grain reserve.
Additionally, plans include setting a Guaranteed Minimum Price (GMP) for commodities, increasing production among smallholder farmers for the 2024/2025 season, and promoting fortified food production.
However, African Development Bank President Dr. Akinwunmi Adesina criticized the reliance on food imports, arguing it undermines Nigeria’s agricultural policy and economic stability.
Nairametrics earlier reported that the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security Abubakar Kyari emphasized that the suspension of import duties is a temporary measure until the next harvest, expected around October or November, and will not be a long-term solution.
