Customs: Implementation of duty waiver on imported foods will begin in a week

Bashir Adeniyi, the comptroller general (CG) of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), says the duty waiver on imported foods would be implemented within the next one week.

Adeniyi spoke on Tuesday in Abuja during a news conference by the heads of security agencies and service chiefs, convened by Christopher Musa, the chief of defence staff (CDS) at the Defence Headquarters.

On July 10, the federal government announced the suspension of duties, tariffs, and taxes on the importation of food commodities to reduce inflation.

The CG said the duty waiver has not been implemented because the ministry of finance is still working out the guidelines.

“But I also like to remind Nigerians that we need to be very, very careful in implementation of this and this is why the guidelines for implementation is being meticulously worked out at the Ministry of Finance,” he said. 

Adeniyi said there is a need to understand what the intervention means for the local markets as most of the food items that enjoy duty waivers and concessions are also cultivated by Nigerian farmers. 

He said the federal government is trying to address the interests of all stakeholders. 

“There is the issue of striking a balance between the long-term interest of Nigerian farmers and stakeholders who are involved in the production of these items and the short-term interest of addressing food inflation,” Adeniyi said.

“So the guidelines are being worked out at the Ministry of Finance and I can assure you that within the next one week these guidelines will be ready and Nigeria customs will begin implementation of these particular fiscal policies.”

‘FG MAKING EFFORTS TO MEET PROTESTERS DEMANDS’

Adeniyi said the demands of the protesters, especially those relating to food inflation and cost of living, are being addressed.

“I like to let Nigerians know that there has been a lot that is going on to address these issues that are related to ameliorating this situation. 

“This is through a mixture of fiscal policies of government and a number of strategic interventions from the government.

“The federal government’s effort as part of intervention is the distribution of strategic food items which was released from the national grain reserves about a month ago.

“This was released to all states of the federation. We also recall that a number of the food items that are consumed in Nigeria are imported.

“Better parts of the components are imported and importations are not done of the shelf, it takes some time before they are done.

“So, one of the things that the president has done is to reduce the cost, to push on the effects of the cost inflation by suspending customs duties and taxes on imported food items for a period of time.”

Adeniyi said the implementation of the tax waiver will reduce the price of food items in the market.