FG, RIFAN plan regional Rice Fair to showcase rising backward integration
As part of drive to convince Nigerians that economic diversification by the Federal Government in agriculture and rice farming in particular is yielding desired fruits, it has sealed understanding with the leadership of Rice Farmers Association in Nigeria (RIFAN) to organise rice trade fairs.
The fairs will come on regional basis including Abuja, Lagos, Enugu and Rivers States in order to show the bountiful harvest of Nigerian rice farmers.
This was made public by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh shortly after reading understanding with the members of RIFAN in Abuja recently.
Explaining more on the regional fairs, Ogbeh averred that “We are going to meet in about two weeks and organise rice fair beginning in Lagos, Abuja, Enugu, Port Harcourt and one or two other cities to showcase the achievements of Nigerian in rice production.”
“There are those who do not believe that Nigerian rice exist but we know they do and we are very proud of the millers for their tenacity, investments and pains they have gone through in the last few years in trying to respond to a national call,” Ogbeh noted.
Before now, there had been claims of rising productivity in local rice but proof to Nigerians who prefer or who have no other choice than foreign smuggled rice find it hard to believe that Nigerian rice is available in the market.
Checks across major foodstuff markets in Lagos and Abuja showed that the dominance of parboiled foreign rice remained unshaken even as the federal government continue to claim that local rice has displaced foreign rice based on the fact that no importer had ordered for Form M from the Nigerian Customs Service in the last two year when the tariff was shut up by the federal government.
However, the truth is that Nigerians are still well over 95 per cent dependent on foreign, but smuggled rice.
Even as foreign rice continue to hold sway, the performance of local rice farmers remain powerful but are discouraged by smuggling and haulage logistics to urban centres.
Besides, this is where the partnership between the Lagos State Government and Kebbi State on rice farming becomes handy as their product; Lake Rice has gained much acceptability in parts of Lagos but for the selling policy which made it mandatory for buyers to go to government designated centres.
Industry stakeholders say the upcoming rice trade fair will among other things; raise the availability and acceptability of the local products to many Nigerians.
