President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the release of 40,000 metric tons of various grains from the Strategic Grains Reserve (SGR) to cushion effect of high food prices in the country due to the festive season.
The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Mohammed Abubakar, announced this Tuesday at the Presidential Villa in Abuja after meeting with the president.
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He said his ministry would handle the distribution of the first batch of 10,000 metric tons together with the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development.
The minister, who said the same process deployed during the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020, to distribute 70,000 Metric Tons of assorted food items across some states and the FCT would be used, said grains were readily available for immediate distribution in compliance with the presidential directive.
He listed the assorted grains to be distributed to include sorghum, maize and millet.
He said the grains were located across the entire country, especially in all the six geopolitical zones where there were silos.
He said the government did not give more attention to agriculture in the North than in the South.
On the Russia/Ukraine conflict and how it affected the importation of wheat, Abubakar said it was an issue of concern because Nigeria imported grains and agriculture input from Ukraine.