Rice Dealers Lament Economic Loss Due To Activities of Smugglers In Nigeria

Rice dealers have decried the high rate of rice smuggling into the country through the porous borders, which they say is leading to job and revenue losses to the nation and investors.

Speaking on the ugly development, the stakeholders said that businesses are closing down and thousands are being laid off on daily basis while there is super-abundance of jobs and new businesses springing up in neighbouring countries like Republic of Benin, Niger Republic and Cameroon because of the increased activity in the seaports as a result of smuggled rice coming to Nigeria.

The stakeholders while speaking with journalists in Lagos said the activities of smugglers have led to job-loss in the shipping, transportation and clearing forwarding agencies and other service providers.

Executive Director, Nigeria Agriculture Development Watch, Dr. Johnson Idowu, lamented that shipping lines and other related businesses are pulling out of Nigeria.

In his words: “The ripple effect of rice smuggling into the country is mass sack and redundancy. Interestingly, the Minster of Labour will soon come on air to issue an ultima­tum to these companies not to sack.”

Idowu added that the government even contemplated the idea of opening the land border initially for the importa­tion of rice, which he said was a colossal error of reasoning.

Said he: “Let us do some elementary Geography. Nigeria is bounded in the North, West and South by Niger Repub­lic, Republic of Benin, and Cameroon respectively. None of these countries is a rice producing nation per se. So what is the rationale behind opening the borders for rice impor­tation from these countries? The only reason there is an increase in rice importation activities in these countries is because they have favourable tariff and policy for rice impor­tation.

“On this premise, unpatriotic businessmen hitherto in Nigeria as rice importers, have since diverted their business­es to these countries. Whereas you may not blame them, opening the land border is to encourage them further to export rice to Nigeria from these countries. Moreover, why would we want to continue to favour neighbours in terms of job creation and revenue generation from rice import rather than adjust our own policies to drive our own revenue gen­eration, and to make businesses return?”, he said.