The Rice Millers, Processors and Dealers Association of Nigeria on Wednesday alerted the nation that poor quality rice had been smuggled into the Nigerian market.

The Vice-Chairman, RIMDAN, Mr. Tunji Owoeye, expressed the association’s concerns over the poor quality of the commodity currently in the market, linking the development to the nation’s porous borders.

Owoeye explained at a press briefing in Lagos that the situation was impacting negatively on the health of the nation’s citizenry.

He stressed the need for the government to urgently address the issue of smuggling through the land borders.

According to him, this is because smuggling activities will spell doom for the country’s rice value chain.

The News Agency of Nigeria quoted Owoeye as saying, “If you follow the trend in the industry in the last six months, the government has increased duties to discourage importation in order to boost local production.

“We support the government’s initiative, but as we increase levies and taxes, it gives the smugglers more room to operate, especially through the corridors of the Republic of Benin.”

He said the economy of the neighbouring country was solely dependent on Nigeria’s.

According to him, the only way to tackle smuggling is through sincerity and willingness of the government to police the borders, adding that this could be achieved with stakeholders like the rice processors and importers giving relevant information about the porous routes and tackle the problem headlong.

Owoeye said, “I am sure that with the collaborative efforts of the agencies of government and stakeholders in the rice industry in Nigeria, we can reduce the smuggling. I am not sure we can stop it completely, but we can reduce it to the barest minimum such that it will not negatively impact on local investments or the government revenue.

“I am sure that with time, smugglers will know that Nigeria is not a country to toy with in this respect.”

He, however, commended the courage of the Nigeria Customs Service for effectively tackling smuggling activities in the last two months.

“They have made significant seizures of smuggled rice into the country in the last two months. They always pledge to assist us by policing our borders to put a stop to the smuggling of rice,” he said.

Source: THE PUNCH