Rice Sale: FG Makes NIN Mandatory For N40,000/Bag

Federal government has restricted the sale of its N40,000 per bag of rice to only public servants with National Identification Numbers (NIN).

This was disclosed yesterday in Abuja by the minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari, at the flag-off of the sale of 30,000 metric tonnes of milled rice to the beneficiaries.

The minister said the move is to curb racketeering and as part of efforts to crash the prices of food in Nigerian markets.

Kyari, who represented President Bola Tinubu at the event, said the rice would be sold strictly on “one man-to-one bag or one-woman-to-one bag” basis.

He said the rice, which would be sold at a flat rate of N40,000 only for 50kg, is the federal government’s intervention for the sales of subsidised milled rice to ameliorate the prevailing food crisis in Nigeria.

“This food intervention can be said to be timely considering the times and challenges we are in as citizens of this great nation,” he said.

“As one of the numerous efforts of the present administration to cushion the effect of the high cost of food commodities, kindly join me to applaud the immense efforts of the present administration such as the release of 42,000 metric tonnes (mt) of assorted food commodities (AFC) to vulnerable and the 30,000mt of milled rice which is being flagged-off for sale to Nigerians today, September 5, 2024.”

The minister blamed COVID-19, the Russia-Ukraine war, climate change amid other localised factors/challenges for the high cost of food prices.

“This has led to increased concern and risk of food insecurity and general decline in the standard of living globally. I therefore urge us to understand that the present challenges are not peculiar to our great country,” he stated.

Kyari added that the federal government, being aware of the potential challenges associated with the sale of an important staple such as rice at this critical period, has deployed a multi-disciplinary machinery of government and also put in place certain processes and conditions to ensure the transparency, wider reach and success of this exercise.

“This includes one-man, one-50kg of rice; others are the verification of intending beneficiaries using relevant identification mediums such as the National Identification Number (NIN) and phone numbers to forestall multiple access to this food commodity by fraudulent individuals at the detriment of other citizens,” he said.

He implored citizens to cooperate with the relevant citizens to achieve the initiative.

“Let us work together to ensure that the dream of the present administration to uphold the fundamental right to food for all Nigerians is achieved. It is expected that with the injection of 30,000mt (1000 trucks of 30mt each of these important staples into Nigeria’s food balance sheet, it will not only crash the price of rice but also provide other closer food substitutes and alternatives,” Kyari said

He called on Nigerians to remain steadfast and be patient with President Bola Tinubu as his numerous efforts to enhance food security would soon begin to pay off.

The director, food and strategic reserve of the ministry, Sule Abutu, outlined the procedure to buy the subsidised rice. “To qualify for the one-person, one-bag, you must have National Identification Number. Of course, you have phone numbers and those in public service are all registered under the Integrated Payroll and Personal Information System (IPPIS) platform,” he said.

“Once you have any of these three, at the point of sale, with the NIN logged into the system, a code number and a treasury receipt will be generated and with that, the buyer can get to the collection centre and pick up his bag. The receipt will indicate time and point of collection to eliminate stampede.”

In July, the minister of Information, Idris Mohammed, announced the sale of subsidised rice.

Following this, the Ministry of Special Duties and Inter-Governmental Affairs, through its Human Resources Management Department, instructed civil servants to register for the purchase of the food item.

However, the government later suspended the plan without providing any explanation for the decision.