Many businesses are still mourning and counting their losses over the poorly introduced cashless policy that marred business activities in the first quarter of 2023.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had in a bid to tame the constant rising inflation by redesigning the nations currency and introducing a cashless policy.
Unfortunately, both policies were poorly timed and implemented in such manner that it contributed adversely to boosting the nations weak economy.
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Regular Nigerians were left without a means of getting cash, this affected the life span of some businesses. Most of them no longer exist.
Poultry farmers in the Southwest of Nigeria are the latest among those who have come out to state their losses during the ill-timed cashless policy saga.
According to the chairman of the Poultry Association of Nigeria (PAN) in the Southwest zone, Gideon Oluleye, losses of about ₦50 billion were incurred due to the disruption.
Many wholesale and retailers had to reduce the quantity of products they were buying from producers while some just placed purchase on hold till uncertainties were cleared
25 Million Job Loss Coming
This situation no doubt affected poultry farmers, whose losses were due to egg glut and perished poultry products during the implementation of the tight fiscal policy.
Oluleye on Friday, made it clear that about 25 million people could lose their jobs in the poultry industry if the government did not intervene to mitigate their challenges.
He explained that the losses associated with the implementation of the policy almost destroyed the poultry industry.
Highlighting the heavy losses that farmers suffered, with many farms collapsed or running at half capacity, he appealed for the Federal Government’s intervention.
Government’s Intervention
Oluleye, suggested that the government should mop up approximately 15 to 20 million crates of unsold eggs and chickens, and use these products to feed internally displaced persons (IDPs).
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He further advised using the unsold eggs in government hospitals, saying eggs aid in quick recovery and building up immunity of sick patients.
Just as he called for the resuscitation of the school feeding programme, which he said relies heavily on eggs and chicken meat.
The Southwest poultry farmers also requested that the government should subsidise major inputs in poultry farming, particularly maize and soya beans, which sells for ₦240,000 and ₦450,000 a tonne.
They reminded the government that, “the negative impact the COVID-19 had on farmers and farms is yet to abate.
“Hardly had farmers recovered from this when the CBN brought another hardship on them through the policy of the naira redesign.
“As we speak now, between 15 and 20 million crates of eggs are in the economy looking for buyers”.
He emphasised the urgent need to rescue the poultry sector of the Nigerian economy, which generates approximately six per cent of the county’s gross domestic product (GDP).
The poultry farmers urged the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the World Bank and the Private Financial Advisory Network (PFAN), to come to their aid.
