Political Economist and Professor of Strategy and Development, Commonwealth Institute of Advanced and Professional Studies, Anthony Kila, has thrown his weight behind the importation and subsidy of food as a means of dealing with the current food crisis Nigeria is dealing with.
Kila made his position known while addressing an international forum of African and Caribbean Political Economists, on a webinar organised to discuss economic and developmental opportunities in African and Caribbean countries.
According to him, the situation Nigeria is dealing with is inflation induced largely by sudden and astronomical increase in cost of production and distribution, as well as reduction in volume and variety of production.
He stated that a pragmatic short-term solution will be to import and subsidize food for as many people as possible.
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Kila added while making efforts to boost local production of food, the government can step in to identify where the food items are available in and out of the country, negotiate with food producers even on credit basis and fast track its delivery into and distribution in Nigeria.
He said, “There is an emergency in the country and there is nothing wrong with importing and subsidising food to deal with current food crisis. We can do both as a temporary measure till we can secure farming lands and grow more food; and we need about 10,000 subsidised food outlets across the country to manage the emergency.”
Kila also stated that monetary policies led by the Central Bank of Nigeria cannot save the situation the country is dealing with.
He stated that the country needs more impactful intervention on the real economy, adding that the ministries of economy, agriculture as well that of trade need to make their impact felt.
