From Atiku Sarki, Abuja
The Federal Government has unveiled plans to revitalize its Silos Concession Programme as part of efforts to cut Nigeria’s post-harvest losses, strengthen food storage systems and achieve food sovereignty.
The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari, dropped the hint during a high-level meeting with the Director-General of the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission, Dr. Jobson Oseodian Ewalefoh, and his team at the ministry’s headquarters in Abuja.
In a statement signed by the ministry’s Head of Information, Mr. Ezeaja Ikemefuna, Kyari lamented that Nigeria loses about $10bn worth of crops annually due to poor storage facilities, stressing that revamping the silos was key to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s food security drive.
He said, “Storage facilities are essential to our food security agenda, as they directly address wastage and ensure year-round availability of staple crops.”
The minister disclosed that of the 17 silo complexes concessioned to five private companies, only Flour Mills of Nigeria had met all conditions and was performing optimally.
He noted that monitoring visits to some facilities showed little or no progress, with reported cases of vandalisation and collapse of perimeter fences in locations such as Ikorodu and Ogoja.
Kyari further explained that several concessionaires defaulted on payment obligations, adding that only Flour Mills consistently met performance and financial conditions.
He vowed that the ministry would work closely with ICRC to enforce compliance and ensure that only competent private operators manage silo facilities.
Speaking earlier, Ewalefoh said only private firms with genuine operational needs for silos should be retained, urging the Federal Government to retrieve abandoned facilities.
He also expressed concern that some concessionaires had failed to remit required returns to government coffers.
The meeting ended with the constitution of a committee to review contractual clauses, assess performance, and set new modalities for monitoring and evaluation.