Rice Millers Warn of Crisis Amid Import Waiver Policy

Peter Dama, the National Chairman of the Rice Millers Association of Nigeria, expressed concerns regarding the Federal Government's import waiver on rice, which, while reducing prices for consumers in Lagos to N48,000 and N49,000, is detrimental to local millers. He highlighted that the absence of agricultural subsidies in Nigeria contrasts sharply with countries like India, China, Malaysia, and Japan, which support their farmers, allowing them to produce surplus rice and export it competitively.

Dama pointed out that local millers face unsustainable production costs, stating that if it costs N10 to produce rice but sells for N3, it leads to collapse rather than profit. He also noted rising labor costs, with daily wages for laborers increasing to N5,000, and the cost of loading rice onto trucks rising from N15 to N500 per bag.

This situation exacerbates the challenges faced by local rice producers in Nigeria.