The Federal Government announced on Tuesday that the guidelines for the suspension of customs duty and taxes on imported food items will begin next week.
The Federal Government approved a 150-day duty-free window to allow the importation of maize, husked brown rice, and wheat in July as part of measures to combat rising food inflation nationwide.
The initiative was based on the implementation of the Presidential Accelerated and Stabilisation Advancement Plan.
Speaking on Tuesday at a meeting of heads of security agencies in Abuja, Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adeniyi stated that the policy would start as soon as the guidelines are completed.
He clarified that the policy’s implementation was delayed in order to guarantee that the interests of all Stakeholders including farmers were taken into account.
The custom’s boss asked Nigerians to exercise patience, saying that some imported goods that were already in the nation will be cleared without paying taxes or duty.
Adeniyi said, “There is the issue of striking a balance between the long-term interests of Nigerian farmers and stakeholders who are involved in the production of these items, and the short-term interest of food inflation.
He said the service was dedicated to implementing the policy as outlined by the government.
“We believe that when this is implemented it will help to bring down the prices of food items in the market. The Nigerian Customs is committed to the implementation of this particular fiscal policy as enunciated by the government.
“What does this kind of intervention imply for the local markets? Because we are trying to address the interests of all stakeholders. Those (crops) that are going to enjoy these duty waivers and concessions are also being cultivated by Nigerian farmers.”
According to Adeniyi, the government has been working to eradicate hunger ever since the protests were focused on this goal.
“I’d like to let Nigerians know that there has been a lot going on to address these issues that are related to this situation through a mixture of fiscal policies of the government and the number of strategic interventions from ministries, departments, and agencies”.
“One of the things that I recall is the intervention through the distribution of strategic food items which was released from the national grain reserves about a month ago. This was released to all states of the federation. We also recall that a number of the food items that are consumed in Nigeria are imported. A better part of the components are imported, and importation is not done on the shelf.
“It takes some time before they are done. So one of the things that the President has done is to cushion the effect of the cost inflation by suspending customs duty and taxes on imported food items for some time.”
