President Muhammadu Buhari's first major economic breakthrough and concerted effort to revamp the local economy may be coming through in the direction of rice production as things stand in Nigeria today.
Kebbi State which has been described as the frontliner in the production of rice has flooded the Aba market in Abia State, South-eastern part of Nigeria with locally-produced rice as targeted by the economic policy of the All Progressives Congress-led government which placed a limited ban on the importation of rice in the country to encourage local production.
Labana rice, one of the major (privately-owned) rice brands in Kebbi was seen being offloaded massively at Ehi street by Asa road, Aba yesterday, 24th of August.
"This goes to show the rice are in the market and, we might become self-sufficient in terms of rice production very soon" a market woman said in amazement.
"It seems the agricultural policy of this administration is taking shape and seems to be yielding positive results already" one Mr Emeka Nwosu also reiterated. The price of rice which skyrocketed under Buhari is expected to crash due to market forces.
Alhaji Abdullahi Zuru, the General Manager of Labana Rice Mills Ltd. in Kebbi State, says the company employs 3,000 workers.
In an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Birnin-Kebbi on March, 2016; Zuru said the company established five years ago had two mills to process rice obtained from local farmers who had been assisted to produce the required quantity by the company.
He added that the two rice mills had the capacity to process 16 tonnes of rice per hour.