Nigeria received a shipment of brown rice as it seeks to alleviate climbing food costs that are squeezing consumers.
A consignment of 32,000 tons — the first in a decade — has arrived in Lagos, according to logistics company DUCAT who facilitated the shipment. The grain from Thailand was shipped after the West African nation issued a tariff moratorium on wheat, corn, rice and other food crops last year, DUCAT added.

Despite the duty waiver, purchases have mostly remained limited for fear of hurting local producers.

“Nigeria has been working hard to find solutions to broaden and strengthen its food supply accessibility,” DUCAT Chief Executive Officer Adrian Beciri said in a statement.

Almost six months ago Nigeria announced a series of measures to curb food inflation that’s rising at its fastest pace in three decades in a country where almost half of its more than 200 million people live in extreme poverty.

The government will take steps including introducing a 180-day window to import wheat, corn and other food crops duty free, Agriculture and Food Security Minister Abubakar Kyari said in a statement on Wednesday. Imported foods will also be subjected to a recommended retail price, he said.

Guidelines to ensure compliance with the new measures are being finalized and will be issued in the coming days, according to a government official.

Nigeria is grappling with the consequences of a wave of economic reforms that President Bola Tinubu initiated when he came to power in May 2023. Measures including the devaluation of the naira and a hike in electricity tariffs spawned a surge in prices, with food inflation accelerating to 41% in May — the highest rate in 28 years.

The steep increase in prices and a weakening naira — the world’s worst-performing currency this year after the Lebanese pound — prompted the central bank to raise interest rates to a record. The government signaled last month that it planned to introduce measures to curb price-growth under a so-called Inflation Reduction and Price Stability Order.