CIoD Webinar discusses 150-day duty-free food import policy: Stakeholders raise concerns for local farmers
In response to Nigeria’s rising food prices and supply shortages, the federal government has introduced a 150-day duty-free window for food imports. To explore the policy’s implications, the Chartered Institute of Directors (CIoD) Nigeria, through its Agric & Agro-Allied Committee, hosted a webinar on September 4th.
The event gathered stakeholders from agriculture, finance, and related sectors to discuss the short- and long-term effects of the policy on Nigeria’s agricultural sector, particularly its potential impact on local farmers.
The policy, intended to mitigate food scarcity and inflation, was welcomed by many as a temporary solution. However, several participants expressed concerns about its long-term consequences for the country’s agricultural development.
During a recent Chartered Institute of Directors (CIoD) Nigeria webinar, experts voiced strong reservations about the policy’s potential long-term effects on local farmers and the broader agricultural sector.
Nigeria’s federal government has launched a 150-day duty-free window for food imports as a temporary measure to address escalating food prices and supply shortages.
The policy, which began on September 4th, aims to provide immediate relief to consumers, but its implications for the country’s agricultural sector have raised serious concerns.
Chair of the Agric & Agro-Allied Committee, Mrs. Folusho Olaniyan, MFR, F.CIoD, highlighted the dual challenge of ensuring food security while safeguarding local agriculture.
“This policy can offer relief to households and small-scale farmers, but we must ensure that it does not undermine the progress of local agriculture,” Olaniyan said during the webinar.
Also, President of CIoD Nigeria, Alh. Tijjani Borodo, F.CIoD, echoed these concerns. In his opening remarks, Borodo stressed the urgency of addressing food inflation but cautioned that the influx of cheaper imported goods might endanger the livelihoods of local farmers already grappling with high input costs and inadequate infrastructure.
”We need a thorough analysis of this policy to ensure it benefits all stakeholders in the agricultural sector,” Borodo emphasised.
A key issue discussed was the potential for low-cost imported food products to undercut locally produced goods. Local farmers face high costs for inputs like fertilisers and struggle with insufficient infrastructure for storage and irrigation.
The introduction of cheaper imports could further erode their profitability and potentially lead to a decline in local food production.
The webinar also highlighted the need for increased financial support for smallholder farmers, who are crucial to Nigeria’s agricultural sector.
Stakeholders urged financial institutions to offer more accessible credit solutions, supported by government backing, to help mitigate the risks faced by these farmers.
Meanwhile, there was a consensus on the importance of involving the private sector more actively in shaping agricultural policies. Some participants suggested reinstating commodity boards to stabilise food prices and protect local producers from being displaced by imports.
The webinar, which brought together stakeholders from across the industry, concluded with several recommendations for the government to ensure food security and support local farmers.
Top on the list of recommendations is the convening of a broader stakeholder forum to assess the wider implications of the duty-free food import policy. The webinar also called for the implementation of price regulations to prevent profiteering from food imports and the reinstatement and strengthening of commodity boards to stabilise prices and support local farmers.
Other recommendations include enhancing security measures to protect farmers and agricultural investments from threats such as banditry and theft, investing in irrigation and storage infrastructure to support year-round farming and reduce post-harvest losses, and promoting local fertiliser production to lower farming costs.
The webinar also emphasised the need for targeted financial solutions for smallholder farmers, supported by government credit guarantees, and the inclusion of private sector representatives in future agricultural policy discussions to foster a collaborative approach.
The government has been urged to take these recommendations seriously and act swiftly to address the issues facing the agricultural sector and ensure food security for all Nigerians.
