False: Buhari’s Claims On Food Sufficiency

Misbar’s investigation found the circulating false as Nigeria still imports several food items.

While it is true that Nigeria has effected FX availability restrictions on the importation of food items like sugar, wheat, rice, and corn, the limits have instead caused more hardship and hunger, according to available data.

According to this Bloomberg article, prices of rice and corn have more than doubled since they were added to the list. For example, the price of a 500-gram loaf of bread is up by 11.26% from a year earlier. This is so because the local capacity to meet the demand is limited and further curtailed by insecurity in these farming areas.

Data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and quoted by the Food and Agriculture Organization of The United Nations (FAO) in its April 2021 Monthly News Report On Grains, states that Nigeria produces less than 1% of 4.7 million tons of wheat it is projected to consume this year, while it will import 5.1 million tons. Sugar consumption was 1.62 million tons last year, with only 75,000 tons produced locally.

The FAO also says that about “9.2 million people countrywide face a crisis or worse levels of food insecurity” due to lingering armed conflict, climate change, and COVID-19 pandemic across the country.

Also, the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development estimates that Nigeria spends about $5 billion to import foods annually, of which $1.5 billion is spent on the importation of milk and other dairy products.

Nigerians have also been complaining about the increasing prices of food items across the country.