… expected in Nigeria by January
A shipment of 25,000 tons of Ukrainian grain is currently being readied for transport from the Turkish port of Samsun to Nigeria as part of the Grain from Ukraine program.
The Ukrainian Ambassador to Turkey, Vasyl Bodnar, provided this information in a statement.
He mentioned that the grain is presently warehoused in Turkey under the auspices of the UN World Food Program.
The diplomat further inspected the port and the vessel named Fuat Sezgin, designated to transport the cargo to Nigeria as part of the Grain from Ukraine initiative.
The ambassador highlighted plans to dispatch an additional 60 ships from various ports.
He said, “This grain was delivered in bulk from one of the ports in Ukraine during the Black Sea Grain Initiative. It is now stored in Turkey under the auspices of the UN World Food Program. It is important for us that we cooperate with the World Food Program to supply grain to countries such as Nigeria.”
Grains to arrive in Nigeria in one month
The vessel’s captain transporting Ukrainian grain to Africa informed Ukrinform that the shipment is expected to reach Nigeria in approximately one month.
He said, “The grain that will be loaded on the ship for about 10 more days is 25,000 tons. After loading, we will head for Nigeria. The journey to the Nigerian coast will take about 20 more days and may also depend on weather conditions.”
Backstory
In January, Nigeria’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Geoffrey Onyema together with his counterpart in the Ministry of Agriculture, Mohammad Abubakar signed the “Grains from Ukraine Project” with the Ukrainian Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food, Mykola Solskyi in Abuja.
The war between Ukraine and Russia resulted in global supply shortages, necessitating the signing of the UN-backed Black Sea grain agreement in 2022 to provide a safe passage for grains to countries facing food insecurity, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa.
However, in July, Russia withdrew from the deal after its expiration stating grains from the deal did not reach the countries needing it the most and its grains were not allowed for exports.
