Economic Hardship: We have not received any grains from Tinubu Govt— States cry out

Amid reports that the Federal Government has authorised the release of grains to intervene in the current hardship in the country, states have lamented that their warehouses are empty.

They noted that apart from the palliatives received towards the end of last year, which were distributed, there’s currently nothing to distribu

Government had approved N180 billion for the 36 states of the federation to procure grains and other items in August 2023.

The measure was to bring temporary solutions to the high cost of living arising from the removal of fuel subsidy.

Up until now, the distribution of the items  is a subject of controversy across the country as citizens complain of not receiving any.

With the prices of commodities on a steady rise and scarcity of food items spreading across the country, there are growing concerns over agitations among the populace, especially given the recent protests witnessed over cost of living.

To cushion the effect of hardship and possibly reduce the rising food prices, President Bola Tinubu authorised the release of grains to Nigerians at no cost.

But what many called mismanagement of the subsidy palliatives, has given rise to fears that the 42, 000 MT of grains may not be properly handled.

Findings by Sunday Vanguard across the states showed that while many states await the item, there are concerns that the process of distribution may not be transparent.

Further inquiries from the states’ ministries of agriculture showed that many states do not have strategic food reserves. The issue is worsened by current insecurity in the country, especially in states known for high production of crops. At the moment, the twin issues of insecurity and inflation occasioned by fuel subsidy removal has made more Nigerians unable to feed themselves.

As of 2023, the Food and Agricultural Organisation, FAO, projected that about 25.3 million people in Nigeria would face acute food insecurity.

A quarterly report released by the global organisation showed that the figure projected was higher than the 19.45 million forecasts in 2022.

Given the current situation in the country, more people now face acute food crises across the states.