The Bola Tinubu-led federal government has written off the Naira redesign policy implemented by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) under Godwin Emefiele from Dec. 15, 2022, to Feb. 2023, saying it led to financial hardship for farmers, and pushed them into bankruptcy.
Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari, stated this on Monday while appearing before the National Assembly joint committee on Agriculture chaired by Senator Saliu Mustapha (APC).
In his presentation, the minister said the focus of the 2024 budgetary proposals for the sector is to achieve food security in the country.
Kyari explained that several factors like insecurity and the naira re-design policy, impoverished the farmers and severely threatened food security in the country .
“The cash crunch caused by the Naira re-design, made most of the farmers sold their farm produce at give away price for survival , since buyers couldn’t access cash to buy the produce from them.
“The policy which coincided with harvest season , ended rendering the farmers empty financially,” he said.
In their separate remarks at the session, Hon Dahiru Ismaila Haruna from Toro Federal Constituency in Bauchi State said; ”Hon Minister , being from the North East , the picture i’m about to paint shouldn’t be stranged to you at all.
“The pathetic picture of people dying of hunger on daily basis while majority of those surviving , feed once a day.
“Making it worrisome is the fact that even people from neighbouring countries like Chad, Niger, Benin Republic and Central Aftrica , are trooping in to mop up the little food , signalling total famine in the area if not urgently addressed by stockpilling the silos.”
While Hon Ademorin Kuye from Shomolu Federal Constituency, Lagos State, wrote off the silos by putting it to the Minister that most of the silos built by President Jonathan administration, are alleged to be concession for N20million each.
The Minister however in his response, assured the lawmakers that all issues raised are being addressed and would be decisively addressed in the 2024 fiscal year.