Some portions of the 42,000 metric tonnes of assorted grains provided by the Federal Government to help cushion the food crisis in Nigeria have arrived in at least eight states across the country.
Officials of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security confirmed on Monday that the grains had arrived in Kano, Kwara, Kogi, Ebonyi, Adamawa, Kebbi, Sokoto, Taraba, among others.
According to The PUNCH, the Director, Food and Strategic Reserve, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, Sule Haruna, told our correspondent that the FMAFS in conjunction with partner agencies of government was complying with the directive of President Bola Tinubu with respect to distributing the food items to states.
Haruna, said, “The grains are being moved to all the states. It is not a question of one state or the other, rather it is to every state of the federation, including the FCT. They are all included in the mandate and the distribution is currently ongoing for all the assorted food items.
“Additional details would have been released, but everyone is just being careful because of the way they are jumping onto the trucks. This is why we have been quiet about it,” he stated.
When told that some of the grains were distributed in Kano State on Monday, Haruna replied, “Not only in Kano. If you go to Yola, it is there; go to Kogi, it is there; Kebbi, Sokoto, Taraba, everywhere. It is just that we don’t have to make noise about it.
“Very soon the minister is going to call you (journalists) and there will be a kind of symbolic ceremony. But right now we have to be very careful because the way people started hijacking the commodities and climbing the trucks made everyone afraid.
“However, I want to assure you that the movement of the grains to all the states is ongoing. If you call Ebonyi now, they will tell you yes. We are just being careful, but I want to let you know that it is going on. If you call Kwara now, they will tell you the same thing.”
President Tinubu had in February ordered the release of 42 metric tonnes of grains from the national grains reserves to cushion the food crisis in the country.
The government said in addition it reached an agreement with the Rice Millers Association of Nigeria to release 60 metric tonnes, making a total of 106 metric tonnes of grains.