DARMA RICE MILLS :THE WAY TO GO
DARMA RICE MILLS :THE WAY TO GO
By:
Nurudeen Dauda
17th January, 2023
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To start with, investments by way of setting up of Rice mills is one of the ways to achieve Rice self-sufficiency in Nigeria. Other factors required are; namely: affordable fertilizer, improve seedlings, access to cheap credits, pesticides, agric mechanization, improve security, and favourable government policies etc.
According to Daily Trust Sunday Newspaper, "Productivity per hectare increased to an average of four to five metric tonnes, integrated rice mills grew astronomically to over 50 in 2021 and national output to over nine million metric tonnes "-(15th January, 2023). According to leadership Newspaper, "Fertiliser blending plants in Nigeria had increased astronomically from 10 in 2015 to 142 while the number of rice mills had increased from 10 in 2015 to 80"-(7th January, 2023).
It is a fact that we are about to achieve Rice self-sufficiency courtesy of the ongoing Rice farming Revolution of the Buhari administration, but only if the effort is sustained beyond the administration. We just need little push not reversal on the gains so far recorded. It is on this note that Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria (RIFAN) must engage all politicians vying for presidential post to secure their commitment towards sustaining the success recorded so far otherwise we will go back to square zero. It is a fact that we do not have the capacity to compete with Rice farmers from Thailand, China, India and Bangladesh etc in a free market environment. Our farmers need protection!
According to Daily Trust Sunday Newspaper, "Prior to 2015, about N600bn worth of rice was imported each year to close the demand-supply mismatch for milled rice. With only six operational integrated rice mills and a national paddy output of roughly 4.5 million metric tonnes at the time"- (15th January, 2023).
Alh. Dahiru Bara'u Mangal has joined the Rice value chain by setting up of soon to be commissioned Darma Rice Mills Katsina which is located at kilometre 2, Tafawa Balewa Way, along Katsina-Dutsin-Ma Road, Katsina, the multi-billion naira project is equipped with state-of-the-art facilities. Darma Rice Mills has the capacity of producing 120 tons of rice per day. An indigenous rice processing company, Darma Rice Mills, is set for the production of over 5,000 bags of rice daily to be distributed to various parts of the country. Permit me to congratulate Alh. Dahiru Bara'u Mangal for this great fit. We need more investors of the likes of Alh.Dahiru Bara'u Mangal in the other Rice value chain.
Unarguably 80% of Nigerians now resort to the consumption of local Rice although we buy it at a very exorbitant price, but atleast our "local" farmers not "foreign" farmers are becoming millionaires in the meantime. This makes a lot of economic sense for me from economic nationalism point of view. A lot of funds have been committed to Rice farming under president Buhari. According to Daily Trust Sunday Newspaper, "As at February, 2022, the CBN had disbursed N975.61bn to 4.52 million smallholder farmers across the country under ABP" -(15th January, 2023).
However, I quite agree that the price of local Rice is still very high to consumers and it needs to go down. Just as the local farmers benefit the poor consumers should also benefit. In my observation, deficits in local Rice production in comparison with our annual total consumption is responsible for its exorbitant price. To make the price crash we must increase local production.We need additional output in order to be self-sufficient with a favourable price to consumers.
According to Daily Trust Sunday Newspaper, "Rice production in W/Africa grew by 44% ,but the region still imports 8m tons worth over $3.4bn. The region has relied on importation from Asia to meet this shortfall. “In West Africa, local production of rice covers only 62 per cent of current demand, and it is a fact. In Nigeria it covers only about 72 per cent. That is also a fact.”- (15th January, 2023).
It is a fact that we have had Rice Pyramids from Kebbi, Katsina, Kano, Jigawa, Nassarawa, Niger, Kaduna, Benue, Cross Rivers and Ebonyi states etc., but we are yet to attain Rice self-sufficiency. According to Daily Trust Sunday Newspaper, "President Buhari launched the 13th Rice pyramids in January, 2022 in Abuja"-(15th January, 2023).
Our next government irrespective of its political party or personality needs to sustain president Buhari's legacy in Rice farming by supporting our local Rice farmers with affordable fertilizer, improve seedlings, technical know-how, pesticides, access to cheap funds, improve security, and protection policies etc., in order to increase their output. Since Rice could be grown in all the 36 states of the federation in my view we have business importing Rice from countries that we have more potential than them.
According to Daily Trust Sunday Newspaper, "The former known Western states which include Niger, Sokoto. Kebbi, Sokoto and Zamfara, have a landmass of about 149,000 square kilometres, slightly bigger than Bangladesh. Bangladesh is 147,000, but yet Bangladesh, even with 170 million people occupying that land, produces about 35 million metric tons of rice"-(15th January, 2023).
May God bless Nigeria!