When will food become affordable to the poor?

Every day, it becomes harder for the average Nigerian to eat. The prices of food items like rice, flour, sugar, and milk are increasing weekly. Even though the government has opened the borders and guaranteed that things would become better, nothing has changed. The poor are still complaining, and many can no longer even eat […]

Every day, it becomes harder for the average Nigerian to eat. The prices of food items like rice, flour, sugar, and milk are increasing weekly. Even though the government has opened the borders and guaranteed that things would become better, nothing has changed. The poor are still complaining, and many can no longer even eat one decent meal daily.

More agonising is the fact that Nigeria is endowed with land, farmers, and resources. Our people are hungry, though. The exorbitant price of fuel has resulted in high transport costs of goods, which make everything in the market very expensive.

When people cannot buy food, crime becomes rampant. Hunger drives people to steal, to get involved in bad gangs, and to resort to desperate measures just to live. How can there be progress and peace when stomachs are empty?

The government must act now. It is not a case of opening borders or promising. There should be serious efforts to lower food prices. One such effort is to introduce food price control on basic foods like rice, flour, sugar, milk, and even cooking oil. Let there be a ceiling on how much these foods are sold. So that the poor can afford to eat.

Also, the government must help the local farmers with equipment, fertilisers, and better roads to bring their produce to the cities. They must refrain from relying on importation and help boost local food production.

 

Salem John, [email protected]