The Federal Government has disclosed that the first batch sale of the 50 kilograms (kg) bag of rice for N40,000 will be directed to those in the public service before being made available to other regions of the country.
The Minister of Agriculture, Senator Abubakar Kyari, made this announcement during an interview with Channels TV on Sunday in Abuja.
Kyari stated that public servants have an accurate data system that will ensure proper documentation of the sale of the food item, preventing any abuse of the intervention similar to what occurred during the nationwide distribution of rice.
He emphasised that this system including NIN is designed to maintain transparency and accountability, ensuring that the rice reaches those who need it without mismanagement or corruption.
In addition, Kyari mentioned that the bags of rice will eventually be allocated to the states to ensure fair and equitable distribution across the entire country.
“The bag of rice that Mr President has directed to be sold at N40,000 will go to the public servants, especially in the first instance where you have proper data, NIN and once you buy at that, you won’t come back to buy again.
“It’s out there. For the first instance, the civil servants will be prioritised. Then there will be some that will be given to the state. You must give it to somebody, after all. This one is the first instance. It will go first to the civil servants,” Kyari said.
Backstory
Earlier reports indicated that the Federal Government has established centres nationwide where Nigerians can purchase a 50kg bag of rice for N40,000.
The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, disclosed this last Monday while briefing correspondents on the outcomes of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting, which was presided over by President Bola Tinubu at the State House in Abuja.
Idris noted that this initiative is one of several measures by the Tinubu administration aimed at alleviating the living conditions of citizens.
“At the last Council meeting, we announced that 20 trucks had been given to each state governor for onward distribution to those who actually needed them, to the poorest of the poor in society.
“But the government did not stop. Rice is also being sold at about 50 per cent of its cost; a bag of rice is being sold as we speak. This rice has been taken to various centres across all the states of the federation and is being sold at N40,000. Centres have been created so that those who need this rice can go there and buy this rice at N40,000,” Idris said.
The Minister, however, did not mention specific locations where the centres are created for the sale of the bag rice.
What you should know
According to the Nigeria Bureau of Statistics (NBS), food inflation stood at 40.87% year-on-year as of June 2024.
This significant increase in food inflation is due to the rising prices of various items, including millet flour, garri, bread, prepackaged wheat flour, and semovita.
In response, the federal government has introduced several policies to combat food inflation, such as releasing grains from reserves and donating fertilisers to farmers.
However, these measures have yet to impact food inflation, as food prices continue to soar across the country.
