Key Points
- ADC says rising food inflation is worsening the pressure on Nigerian households.
- Party says food inflation rose to 20.31 per cent year-on-year in July.
- Opposition group proposes lower farm production costs, improved food distribution and a strategic national food reserve.
Main Story
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has criticised the Federal Government’s handling of Nigeria’s food crisis, accusing the Bola Tinubu administration of failing to contain the rising cost of basic food items.
The party’s National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, said the government was placing too much emphasis on the moderation of headline inflation while Nigerians continued to face higher food prices.
The ADC based its criticism on the latest inflation figures released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), which showed food inflation rising from 17.52 per cent in June to 20.31 per cent in July on a year-on-year basis.
Food inflation also increased month-on-month, moving from 3.75 per cent in June to 5.56 per cent in July.
Abdullahi said the food figures offered a different picture of economic conditions from the one presented by the moderation in headline inflation.
The party argued that Nigerians were more directly affected by the cost of food and other essentials than by changes in the broader inflation rate.
It questioned the government’s claim of economic progress, asking why households were still struggling to afford basic food if the administration’s reforms were producing the expected results.
The ADC said its criticism was based on the gap between official economic indicators and the experience of households dealing with higher prices for staples.
The Issues
The opposition party identified food production and distribution as major areas requiring government intervention.
It said high input costs were making farming more expensive, pointing to fertiliser, seeds, machinery, diesel, transportation and access to finance as areas that needed attention.
The ADC also linked food prices to insecurity, saying farmers would struggle to increase production when they could not safely reach their farms, harvest their crops or move produce to markets.
According to the party, poor roads, transportation expenses, insecurity and multiple levies further increase the cost of getting food from producers to consumers.
The party proposed making food security a national security priority and developing an integrated system focused on increasing production and improving the distribution of major food staples.
It said an ADC administration would seek to reduce farmers’ production expenses while addressing the security challenges that prevent them from fully accessing their farms.
The party also proposed a national food reserve and strategic buffer system. Under the proposal, government would release essential food items when prices rise sharply and purchase produce from farmers when market prices fall significantly.
What’s Being Said
Abdullahi accused the Federal Government of celebrating headline inflation figures without adequately addressing the food-price pressures facing households.
The ADC said the government should focus on resolving the conditions driving food prices rather than explaining away the contradiction between improving headline indicators and rising food costs.
What’s Next
The ADC is calling for a broader government strategy covering food production, farm security, transportation, storage and market distribution.
The party said its proposed measures would form part of its approach to addressing food insecurity if it forms the government.
Bottom Line
The ADC says the rise in food inflation shows that Nigerians continue to face significant cost-of-living pressure despite the moderation in headline inflation. The opposition party is proposing interventions across the food supply chain, from farm production and security to transportation and strategic reserves.
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