Food Crisis: Don Backs Food Importation, Subsidy Policy

Funmi Ogundare 

A Political Economist and Professor of Strategy and Development at the 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 this known while addressing an international forum of African and Caribbean political economists at a webinar organised to discuss economic and developmental opportunities in African and Caribbean countries. 

He explained that Nigeria is dealing with an 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 said a pragmatic short-term solution will be to import and subsidize food for as many people as possible. 

“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 stated that while internationally preparing for better production and lower prices that will take months, the government can step in to identify where the food items are available inside and outside the country, negotiate with food producers even on credit bases and fast track its delivery into and distribution in Nigeria.

The don stated that monetary policies led by the Central Bank of Nigeria cannot save the situation the country is dealing with.

“We need more impactful intervention on the real economy, the ministries of economy, agriculture as well that of trade need to make their impact fel,” he stated.

The public analyst also called on political economists in Africa and Caribbean countries to help people, government and businesses identify opportunities for collaborations and guide them towards prosperity.