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Given the acute shortage of food items that spurned a price hike, federal lawmakers may meet with the presidency to implement the Export Prohibition Act to curb the export of agricultural produce and ensure the availability of food items in the country, causing price reductions.
The move began during plenary at the House of Representatives on Wednesday, prompted by the reports of the World Bank and the International Rescue Committee (IRC) that over 31.8 million Nigerians, approximately 16 per cent of the population, mainly women and children, are currently facing severe food insecurity and malnutrition.
This move, which the committees on Agricultural production and services, and that of the Legislative Compliance have been mandated to pursue, and report back to the House within four weeks, came when Nigeria was reaping from its economic diversification programme from which the country generated $2.7 billion from the exports of 211 non-oil products including agricultural commodities in the first half of 2024. The revenue was a 6.26 per cent increase over the $2.539 billion recorded in the same period in 2023.
Banditry activities, food smuggling and exportation are the major drivers of the current food insecurity. Apart from banditry, smuggling of large quantities of food products out of the country, has worsened food insecurity, forcing the House of Representatives to ask the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security to provide more incentives for farmers to boost agricultural production and productivity to curb the rising hunger resulting from the food crisis in the country.
Nigeria is currently experiencing high-level food insecurity, food inflation and food shortages. This leads to millions of citizens lacking access to sufficient and nutritious food, resulting in untold hardship, hunger, and misery among the population.
The Export (Prohibition) Act of 2004 was passed to curb the transportation, sometimes covertly, to foreign markets of necessities like rice, corn, yam, Garri, cassava, and beans. A circumstance comparable to the situation experienced at the present.
A member of the House, Muktar Shagaya, in a motion at plenary, believed the failure to implement the act over time has led to severe food shortages, high food prices, increased food insecurity, and the loss of revenue for farmers and the federal government. He noted a need to address the current food crisis by enforcing the Export (Prohibition) Act, 2004 to prevent food exportation, ensure food availability, and reduce the cost of living for Nigerians.
He therefore urged the Federal Government to urgently implement the Exports (Prohibition) Act, 2004 to curb food smuggling and food insecurity in Nigeria, citing section 14(2) (b) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) which provides that the security and welfare of the people shall be the primary purpose of government.
Nonye Ayeni, the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Export Promotion Council, (NEPC) recently said the non-oil export in the first half of 2024 which earned the country $2.7 billion marks a notable diversification from traditional raw agricultural exports to more semi-processed and manufactured goods with the most exported commodity being Cocoa Beans, accounting for 23.18 per cent of the total export value, followed by Urea/Fertilizer at 13.78 per cent and Sesame Seeds at 11.04 per cent.
“It is pertinent to note that so many exportable products and their derivatives are progressively gaining prominence as the demand for these products in the global market continues to increase. These include but are not limited to fresh vegetables, citrus peel and Sorghum. While their contributions are still obtaining significant levels, their regular inclusion on the export table suggests a growing presence in the export landscape. There are also a lot of potentials in services that need to be explored and harnessed, especially for logistics, and ICT amongst others.”
Last week, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) noted that the increasing harvest of farm produce caused the national average cost of a healthy diet to drop to N1,255 in August 2024, declining by 0.8 per cent from N1, 265 in the previous month of July.
The NBS report, in collaboration with the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN), shows that at the state level, Ogun, Lagos and Rivers States recorded the highest costs with N1,641, N1,615, and N1,572 respectively. Katsina, Kaduna and Sokoto, according to the NBS, accounted for the lowest costs with N880, N951 and N980.
The Cost of a Healthy Diet (CoHD) is the least expensive combination of locally available items that meet globally consistent food-based dietary guidelines. It is used as a measure of physical and economic access to healthy diets. This is a lower bound (or floor) of the cost per adult per day excluding transportation costs and meal preparation.
At the Zonal level, the average CoHD was highest in the Southwest Zone at N1,554 per day, followed by the South-South Zone with N1,381 per day. The lowest average cost of a healthy diet was recorded in the Northwest Zone with N1,041 per day.
In terms of cost share by food group, animal-sourced foods were the most expensive food group recommendation to meet in August, accounting for 37 per cent of the total CoHD for 13 per cent of the total calories.
Fruits and vegetables were the most expensive food groups in terms of price per calorie, accounting for 11 per cent and 14 per cent, respectively of total CoHD while providing only 7 per cent and 5 per cent of total calories in the healthy diet basket. Legumes, Nuts and Seeds were the least-expensive food group at 7 per cent of the total cost.
In August 2024 regarding the least-cost diet and frequently selected least-cost items, Ogun (Urban) topped the chart with the highest Cost of a Healthy (CoHD) at N1,691 per adult per day.
Conversely, Katsina (Urban) offered the most affordable option at N869 for CoHD. Interestingly, some of the least-cost food items remained consistent across both locations. These included Millet Whole Grain, Palm oil, and bitter leaf.
However, price variations between these locations resulted in different costs per item. Also, some unique least-cost options emerged. For instance, Ogun (Urban) favoured Water leaf as the most affordable Vegetable, whereas Katsina (Urban) opted for bitter leaf.
In the Oils and Fats Food group, Palm Oil was the least expensive item in 86 per cent of state sectors, and Groundnuts (shelled) was the least-expensive item in the Legumes, Nuts and Seeds Food Group in 50 per cent of all the State sectors. Coconuts were selected as a least-cost item for the Fruits Food Group in 39 per cent of State-Sectors.
The Cost of a Healthy Diet (CoHD) has steadily risen over the past six (6) months since March 2024. In August 2024, the CoHD was 28 per cent higher than in March 2024 (N982). The main drivers of the increase are Legumes, Nuts and Seeds, Starchy Staples and Vegetables. On a monthly basis, it declined by 0.8 per cent compared to the cost in July 2024 (N1,265). Vegetables saw a decline in price by 14.5 per cent every month.
Regarding policy implications, the Cost of a Healthy Diet provides important information about food access, a key aspect of food security, which is useful for government, civil society and development partners, the private sector, and researchers.
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