CONTINUED from
if my understanding of the issues is correct
it would seem that
historically
here in Nigeria
it has been noticed
that
there are
some factors
that contribute
.. or can/could contribute ..
to
causing an increase in
the costs of food items.
these factors include :
(1) ROADS
(2) PRESERVATION
(3) YIELD
ROADS AND EASE OF ACCESS / TRANSPORTATION
is a key factor
because,
if for example,
the roads to the farms from the cities are bad
then
it will be difficult for transporters and their vehicles
to traverse through the bad roads
and
traversing through such roads
may have
a negative impact in their vehicles
beyond the
normal, usual wear and tear associated with haulage and travel
and these costs
e.g
repair costs,
increased costs of vehicle maintenance,
etc
will
ultimately
be passed on to the consumers
usually via and as
an increase in the costs of the transported food items.
PRESERVATION AND STORAGE OF THE FOOD ITEMS
is also a key factor
as,
for example,
if
the farmers
.. and the sellers ..
lack good storage facilities
where the farm produce can be adequately stored ( .. and preserved .. )
the farm produce items are likely to go bad fairly quickly
.. especially the perishable stuff ..
and
the fewer good ones left over are likely to be sold at higher prices
to compensate for
the loss/financial loss linked to the food produce items that went bad.
YIELD AND QUANTITY OF THE FOOD ITEMS PRODUCED BY/AT THE FARMS
is, invariably, also a key factor,
as
for example,
when the yield / quantity is high
the food items are likely to sell at lower prices.
at a guess,
farmers here in Nigeria,
have
historically
addressed this issue via
stuff like
the practice of Shifting Cultivation, where possible
the use of Manure
the use of Fertilizer
etc
Salma ohbee nnkeh nm ( obi nkem )
added to
this mix of factors
which need to be attended to
all the time,
virtually year in year out
in order to keep prices of food items reasonable and affordable
are NEWER FACTORS
such as :
(A) INSECURITY
AND
THE LACK OF SECURITY OF THE LIVES OF
FARMERS AND FOOD TRANSPORTERS
FROM ATTACKS FROM
KIDNAPPERS,
FULANI TRIBE HERDSMEN,
TERRORISTS,
INSURGENTS,
ETC
if one googles the internet on this subject
one is likely to come across
copious amounts of material
detailing
how
farmers have been attacked
and
some farmers
.. and their communities ..
actually physically displaced from their farmlands.
one may,
if one feels so inclined,
google
INTERNALLY DISPLACED PERSONS ( IDPs ) IN NIGERIA,
ATTACKS ON FARMS
AND
ATTACKS ON FARMERS
IN NIGERIA
and take a look
at the stuff that turns up.
(B) THE IMPACT OF THE FULL REMOVAL OF PETROLEUM SUBSIDY
this has impacted on all sectors of the Nigeria Economy.
the increased cost of the pump price of Gasoline/Petrol/Fuel
has caused,
an increase,
for example,
in the overall amounts that (food) transporters spend on running their vehicles
and
an increase in the transport fares ( of food sellers ) to and from the farms.
sellers of farming utensils, farming equipment, etc
being located in the Nigeria Economy
have also noticed
an increase in their personal transportation costs
and
an increase in business related transportation costs
and this has reflected in
an increase in the costs of farming utensils, farming equipment, etc.
all these increases are ultimately reflected in an increase in the costs of food items.
(C) THE CONTINUING? DEVALUATION OF THE NIGERIA NAIRA
it is not every food item consumed here in Nigeria
that is produced here within Nigeria.
some food items are imported into Nigeria.
these food items that are imported into Nigeria from other countries
are paid for
by the importers who bring them into Nigeria.
where the value of the Nigeria Naira is low,
the Nigeria importer needs high/higher amounts of Naira to,
for example,
pay the U.S Dollars cost of
importing the food items into Nigeria.
in order to be able to remain in business,
the food importer needs to
recover the original amount spent to import the food
and sell at a profit
which reality
is ultimately reflected in
the price/costs at which the importer sells the imported food items.
since the food importer trades in Nigeria
and therefore trades in Naira here in Nigeria
( as,
for example,
the folks who buy his/her/their imported goods
buy and pay with and in Naira )
it is likely that
when the importer spends more Naira to buy the imported items
[ as is likely to be the case
when the value of the Naira is low comparative to
the currency he/she/they pay for the food item in
e.g
Euros, Pounds, Dollars, etc
and
as is likely to be the case
when the value of the Naira DECREASES
AND DECREASES INCREASINGLY
comparative to
the currency he/she/they pay for the food item in
e.g Euros, Pounds, Dollars, etc ]
and then computes his/her/their business costs
in requirement for trading in and remaining in business here in Nigeria
the food importer will sell at high .. higher .. Naira prices.
clearly,
Salma ohbee nm ( obim )
in order to
be able to ameliorate or mitigate the impact of
the above factors on food prices
the managers of the Nigeria Economy will need to be
resourceful folks,
brilliant folks,
seasoned managers.
it is not clear if the managers of the Nigeria Economy possess
the required resourcefulness,
the required brilliance,
the required skill
and
the required seasoning.
at a guess,
with the passage of time,
the real life experiences of the Nigeria Residents
in relation to
the above issues
will probably
serve as an indicator
.. and an indication ..
regarding
whether the managers of the Nigeria Economy possess
the required resourcefulness,
the required brilliance,
the required skill
and
the required seasoning
to respond effectively
to
emerging .. and emergent .. challenges
pertaining to
increases in the costs of food items
and
therefore to inflation
.. and in this instance
to food costs inflation
i.e
food prices inflation.
at a guess, the prevailing mood of unhappiness? among Nigeria residents and Nigeria citizens in relation to the increases in the prices / costs of food items and the presently ( as at date June 2024 ) continuing increases in the costs / prices of food items in Nigeria is aptly .. albeit rather somewhat diplomatically .. reflected in a post by Officia Cici a.k.a Cynthia Okeke at one of her internet pages which i have taken the liberty to copy it’s link address and paste immediately below :
[ TO BE CONTINUED ]
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and
to all intents and purposes
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