FG begins sale of rice at N40,000 to Nigerians with NIN.
The federal government has commenced the sale of 30,000 metric tonnes of milled rice to Nigerians at subsidised rates of N40,000 per 50-kilogram bag.
The subsided rice will be sold to only public servants with duly registered National Identification Numbers (NIN).
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, represented by the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari, who disclosed this during the flag-off ceremony on Thursday, added that the rice intervention will be sold strictly on a “one person, one bag” basis.
He said the rice — which is to be sold at a flat rate of ₦40,000 naira only for 50kg — is the federal government intervention for the sales of subsidised milled rice to ameliorate the prevailing food crises in Nigeria.
“This food intervention can be said to be timely considering the times and challenges we are in as citizens of this great nation,” he said.
“As one of the numerous efforts of the present administration to cushion the effect of high cost of food commodities, kindly join me to applaud the immense efforts of the present administration such as the release of 42,000MT of Assorted Food Commodities (AFC) to vulnerable and the 30,000MT of milled rice which is being flagged-off for sales to Nigerians today 5th September, 2024.”
The minister blamed COVID-19, the Russia-Ukraine war, climate change amidst other localized factors/challenges for the high cost of food prices.
“This has led to increase concern and risk of food insecurity and general decline in the standard of living globally. I therefore urge us to understand that the present challenges are not peculiar to our great country,” he said.
He added that the federal government being aware of the potential challenges associated with the sales of an important staple such as rice, at this critical period has deployed a multi-disciplinary machinery of Government, as well put in place certain processes and conditions to ensure the transparency, wider reach and success of this exercise.
“This includes one man one 50kg of rice, others are the verification of intending beneficiaries using relevant identification mediums such as the National Identification Number (NIN) and phone numbers to forestall multiple access to this food commodity by fraudulent individuals at the detriment of other citizens,” he said.
He implored citizens to cooperate with the relevant citizens to achieve the initiative.
“Let us work together to ensure that the dream of the present administration to uphold the fundamental right to food for all Nigerians is achieved. It is expected that with the injection of 30,000MT (1000 trucks of 30MT each of these important staples into Nigeria’s food balance sheet, it will not only crash the price of rice but also other closer food substitutes and alternatives.”
He called on Nigerians to remain steadfast and be patient with Mr. President as his numerous efforts to enhance Food security will soon begin to pay off.
Speaking to journalists, Haruna Sule, Director of Strategic Grains Reserve, Ministry of Agriculture, said civil servants could access the grains from the point of sale with their Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) and NIN.
Sule said Nigerians could only use their NlN to access the rice.
“Once you have any of these three, you present it to the sales operators and it is logged on the platform that has been created.
“After this, you proceed to pay electronically with your ATM; once the payment is done, it is linked to the initial sales operator, and it shows that you have paid; then a receipt will be issued with a code number.
“With this code number, you will be issued with a treasury receipt to show you have paid to the government.
“Then, you are given a receipt which shows the point of collection and time of collection; this is to eliminate any form of stampede,” he said.
