Nigeria To Vietnam: No Rice Importation, Plant Your Rice on Nigerian Soil

The Nigerian government has rejected offers from Vietnam to import rice into the country at discounted rates. The government instead urged Vietnamese investors to build rice processing mills in Nigeria.

Sunday Akpan, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Investment disclosed the position of the Nigerian government while speaking at the Nigeria-Vietnam Trade and Investment Forum (NVTIF) in Abuja last Wednesday. Akpan added that since Vietnam was among the top five rice producers in the world, Nigeria would welcome collaboration with Vietnamese government and investors in the area of building rice processing mills in Nigeria given their vast experience in rice production.

Vuong Dinh, Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister on Tuesday, October 29, appealed to the Nigerian government to allow its country to import rice into Nigeria

The Nigerian Federal government had two months ago, closed its land borders, shutting out many foreign goods. The federal government rejected plea by Vietnam that its rice should be allowed into Nigeria after the country’s border was closed about two months ago. The Nigerian government, instead, urged Vietnamese investors to build rice processing mills in the country. The government noted that there are large arable lands and potentials in rice farming in the country, urging the Asian country’s firms to take advantage