The Federal Government has announced that only public servants with valid National Identification Numbers (NIN) will be eligible to purchase rice as it launches the sale of 30,000 metric tonnes of milled rice.
The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari, while inaugurating the program, explained that the initiative aims to prevent racketeering and help reduce food prices across Nigerian markets.
Speaking on behalf of Bola Tinubu, Kyari emphasized that the rice will be sold on a strict “one person, one bag” basis.
The rice, priced at ₦40,000 for a 50kg bag, is part of a federal government initiative to provide subsidized milled rice in response to the ongoing food crisis in the country.
“This food intervention can be said to be timely considering the times and challenges we are in as citizens of this great nation,” he said.
“As one of the numerous efforts of the present administration to cushion the effect of high cost of food commodities, kindly join me to applaud the immense efforts of the present administration such as the release of 42,000MT of Assorted Food Commodities (AFC) to vulnerable and the 30,000MT of milled rice which is being flagged-off for sales to Nigerians today 5th September, 2024.”
The minister blamed COVID-19, the Russia-Ukraine war, climate change amidst other localized factors/challenges for the high cost of food prices.
“This has led to increase concern and risk of food insecurity and general decline in the standard of living globally. I therefore urge us to understand that the present challenges are not peculiar to our great country,” he said.
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He noted that, recognizing the potential challenges tied to the sale of an essential staple like rice during this critical period, the federal government has deployed a multi-disciplinary task force and established specific processes and conditions to ensure transparency, broad accessibility, and the overall success of the initiative.
“This includes one man one 50kg of rice, others are the verification of intending beneficiaries using relevant identification mediums such as the National Identification Number (NIN) and phone numbers to forestall multiple access to this food commodity by fraudulent individuals at the detriment of other citizens,” he said.
He implored citizens to cooperate with the relevant citizens to achieve the initiative.
“Let us work together to ensure that the dream of the present administration to uphold the fundamental right to food for all Nigerians is achieved. It is expected that with the injection of 30,000MT (1000 trucks of 30MT each of these important staples into Nigeria’s food balance sheet, it will not only crash the price of rice but also other closer food substitutes and alternatives.”
He called on Nigerians to remain steadfast and be patient with Mr. President as his numerous efforts to enhance Food security will soon begin to pay off.
The director, food and strategic reserve of the ministry, Haruna Sule Abutu outlined the procedure to buy the subsidised rice.
“To qualify for the one person one bag, you must have National Identification Number, of course you have phone numbers and those in public service are all registered under the Integrated Payroll and Personal Information System (IPPIS) platform,” he said.
“Once you have any of these three, at the point of sale, with the NIN logged into the system, a code number and a Treasury receipt will be generated, and with that the buyer can get to the collection center and pick up his bag. The receipt will indicate, time and point of collection to eliminate stampede.”
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