The price of a 50kg bag of rice in Nigeria has reportedly skyrocketed again, now hitting ₦100,000, just months after it had dropped to around ₦65,000.
A market survey by Vanguard in Lagos shows that short-grain rice now sells for ₦85,000–₦90,000, while long grain has surged to ₦100,000.
Many traders blame the expiration of the 150-day duty-free import window introduced under the Presidential Accelerated Stabilisation and Advancement Plan.
“Honestly, I can’t understand Nigeria’s system again. We are frustrated. We are not in business,” Mrs. Bolatito Yunisa, a rice dealer at Daleko Market in Lagos lamented.
“A bag of short grain that went as low as ₦65k has now hit ₦85k. Long grain is selling between ₦90k and ₦100k—and it’s still going up. Where is Nigerian rice? Millers say there’s no paddy, and many are shutting down because of forex issues. Do we go hungry?”
At major markets like Daleko and Mile 12, the story is the same. Traders say families can no longer afford full bags of rice.
“It’s not funny at all,” Bukola Osagie, a seller at Mile 12 Market said. “Even as a dealer, I now sell in Derica measurements. People can’t afford full bags anymore, and we have to split it up just to make sales.”
The import duty waiver was intended to crash food prices.
But according to Peter Dama, President of the Rice Millers Association of Nigeria (RIMAN), only a few politically connected companies were allowed to benefit.
“None of our members were granted waivers or quotas. But we heard of one big rice mill whose chairman thanked the president publicly for receiving one. We also heard, unofficially, that two other firms got them too.”
“One company reportedly brought in 200,000 tonnes of brown rice worth $84 million under this waiver. Meanwhile, our applications got no response from the government.”
“Between July and December 2024, Nigeria spent ₦1.9 trillion ($1.17 billion) importing 2.4 million tonnes of rice. And still, rice is selling for ₦100k. What’s the point?”
Despite the massive imports, smuggled rice from Benin Republic still sells for ₦70,000 to ₦78,000.
Dama estimates that over 1 million tonnes of rice have been smuggled into Nigeria since January 2025.
“Smuggling is illegal, but it’s thriving. Weak borders, high local prices, and lack of enforcement are fueling it. Local millers are shutting down. Farmers have unsold paddy. We’re in trouble.”
“Nigeria has enough rice mills to feed the country,” Dama said, “but with bad policies and inconsistent waivers, the entire industry is under threat.”
“Electricity is unstable, we rely on expensive generators, fertiliser prices are up, labour is costly—and now, we can’t compete with cheap imports. We can feed the nation, but not in these conditions.”
Jerry Olanrewaju, a youth leader in agriculture, says the waiver process lacks transparency and is destroying the gains Nigeria made in rice self-sufficiency.
“There is no public record of who got waivers. The system favors politically connected importers. Meanwhile, smallholder farmers—who produce 70% of our rice—are left behind.”
“Imported rice gets tax cuts. Local rice does not. It’s unfair. It’s policy confusion.”
“Every naira waived could’ve gone into irrigation, improved seeds, or mechanization. But instead, it went into helping a few companies bring in cheaper rice to undercut our farmers.”
Despite massive losses and shutdowns across the rice value chain, both the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Finance have remained silent.
“So far, there’s no comprehensive statement or emergency policy to stabilize rice farming,” Olanrewaju said. “No price guarantees, no buffer stock purchases, no support for struggling farmers.”
“The Ministry of Agriculture must speak out, engage stakeholders, and coordinate with Customs, the Finance Ministry, and the CBN. Right now, it’s as if they don’t care.”
The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) warns that over 30 million Nigerians face acute hunger during the 2025 lean season (June–August).
Stakeholders fear that without a clear, long-term agricultural strategy, the crisis will only deepen.
“Smuggled rice is cheaper not because local rice is bad—but because Nigeria’s farmers get no support,” Olanrewaju said. “Other countries subsidize their rice, we don’t.”
“If we don’t act now, all our progress in rice farming will collapse.”
As one market woman bitterly asked,
“Is this how we will continue to live as a country?”