To stop prices from soaring, Nigeria will postpone levies on some food imports

In an effort to curb soaring prices in the most populous country in Africa, Nigeria intends to suspend tariffs on some food imports, such as wheat and maize, for 150 days and recommend a retail price, according to the country’s agricultural minister on Monday.

This action falls under the government’s aim to boost growth, which has been insecure for nearly a decade, and reduce food inflation, which has risen to over 40% annually.

The finance minister announced last week that President Bola Tinubu has instructed his economic management team to draft a 2 trillion naira ($1.33 billion) stimulus package to support important industries and address worries about food prices and supply.

Agricultural Minister Abubakar Kyari said in a statement posted on X that “the government has taken a raft of measures to be implemented over the next 180 days to ameliorate food inflation in the country caused by affordability and exacerbated by availability.”

Along with private sector imports, he said that the government would also purchase 250,000 metric tons of wheat and 250,000 metric tons of maize. The semi-processed commodities will be imported with the intention of supplying small-scale millers and processors.

The West African country has experienced a sharp increase in food inflation due to poor road infrastructure connecting farmers to markets and instability in some of its food-producing regions.

The dilemma of rising living expenses and double-digit inflation, which is locked at a nearly 30-year high, have been exacerbated by the skyrocketing prices of staple foods.

Food products imported over the nation’s land and maritime boundaries will be exempt from taxes, according to Kyari.