The National Chairman of the Rice Millers Association of Nigeria, Peter Dama, has warned that the Federal Government’s import waiver on rice may have lowered prices for consumers but is forcing local millers out of business due to high production costs and the absence of agricultural subsidies.
Speaking on the impact of the import policy, Dama told Sunday PUNCH that while consumers, particularly in Lagos, were benefiting from lower rice prices, the policy was having devastating consequences for Nigeria’s rice milling industry.
He said, “This importation, Lagosians are saying that they are happy because of the waiver. They can now buy rice for N48,000 and N49,000, and they are happy because the waiver is working for them. The waiver is working for them but killing the industry in Nigeria. So you see, that is an issue, that is a problem.”
According to him, the challenge is compounded by the fact that countries exporting rice to Nigeria heavily subsidise their agricultural sectors, while Nigerian farmers receive little or no meaningful support.
“Because the government is importing, but the other countries are subsidizing their own agriculture. Nigeria is not subsidising anything. It’s not subsidizing agriculture. It’s only through word of mouth that we hear that agriculture is being subsidised. But the fact of the matter is that the subsidies are not there. India subsidized their farmers. China subsidized its farmers. Malaysia subsidized its rice farmers. Japan subsidized its rice farmers.
