The federal government has attributed the incessant rise in food prices to mass purchases by organisations as COVID-19 palliatives.
Atiku Bagudu, Kebbi State governor and vice president of the National Food Security Council made the assertion during the council’s meeting held at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
He explained that the escalating cost of food was as a result of the speedy response to cushion the effects of the pandemic.
“The CACOVID was buying food items for the coronavirus pandemic response in bulk at a peak of the beginning of the season, at a time when demands are not high. So, it contributed to the high cost,” he stated.
He also pointed to the global lockdown as another major reason for the restriction in the movement of food items, adding that now, harvests are coming in and it is good.
Bagudu, however, assured Nigerians of lesser food prices in the coming months, considering the fact that food items are now being moved easily across states.
Addressing the issue of food shortage and challenges in the agriculture sector, he stated government’s readiness to intervene and create an enabling environment so that farmers, fishermen and those in husbandry can resume economic activities as quickly as possible.
The NFSC vice president noted that despite the recent devastating floods, the country is blessed with a good ecosystem that would enable farmers to kick start planting and there would be no food insufficiency as the stakeholders are concerned with ways to hasten up another planting process.
