The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has provided an explanation for the delay in implementing the import duty waiver on maize, husked brown rice, and wheat.
NCS Spokesman Abdullahi Maiwada stated that the delay was due to the fact that the list of beneficiaries had not yet been provided by the Ministry of Finance.
Under the Presidential Accelerated and Stabilisation Advancement Plan, the Federal Government had directed the NCS to offer a 150-day duty-free window for the importation of maize, husked brown rice, and wheat to help address rising food inflation. The NCS had previously announced that the guidelines for the waiver would commence a week following this directive.
Maiwada addressed reporters at a joint news conference organized by the Strategic Communications Inter-agency Policy Committee of the National Security Adviser in Abuja.
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He explained, “The issue of food security. You made mention of the policy that was announced by Mr. President and we have issued a statement on the guidelines on how to benefit from that policy. Well, I would like to discuss in such a way that the common man would understand how these things work.”
He further clarified, “People think that me and you can just go and import rice. No, that is not what the policy is all about. We have policy issues that have a long-term effect. We have the medium-term and we have the short-term effects. So, while formulating policies that are related that have a short-term effect, we have to do it in such a way that it will not have adverse effects on long-term policy issues.”
Maiwada emphasized that the NCS’s role is to implement, not formulate, government policies. “That’s why the statement we issued is based on the guideline issued by the Federal Ministry of Finance. They have issued a guideline on how to achieve, what are the conditions, and what are the requirements for you to benefit from that zero import duty.”
He added that the waiver applies to items with an initial 35% duty, and emphasized, “However, the policy stated clearly that you must be a miller, you must be a taxpayer, you must have been into operations for a certain number of years and there will be a quota that will be issued by the Federal Ministry of Finance.”
“The list of those who benefit from those exemptions will come from the Ministry of Finance and our role as an agency of government is to implement the directives of the government,” Maiwada concluded. “So we are policy implementers, not formulators. By the time we get lists, within the twinkle of an eye, we are going to implement those directives from the Federal Ministry of Finance.”
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