The federal government under the leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday approved the reopening of Nigeria’s land borders.
However, despite the reopening of the borders, some other products remain banned as confirmed by the Minister of Finance, Budget and Planning, Zainab Ahmed.
It will be recalled that the Federal Executive Council (FEC) on Wednesday approved the immediate re-opening of four land borders which include: Seme, Illela, Maigatari, and Mfun.
Speaking to newsmen after the FEC meeting, Ahmed disclosed that even though the President has approved the reopening of some land borders, items such as rice and poultry remain on the list of banned items which must not be brought in through the borders.
“The ban on the importation of rice, poultry and other banned products still subsists and will be implemented by the border patrol team,” the Minister said.
The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Niyi Adebayo, also added that all relevant agencies will sustain the efforts against smuggling and smugglers so that the gains recorded during the border closure will be effectively sustained.
“The issue of smuggling of rice to the country has reduced drastically. We are hoping that our agencies will be able to sustain that so also is the issue of poultry smuggling.
“Also, very important is the issue of importation of small arms and weapons into the country that also has stopped,” Adebayo said.
In August 2019, President Buhari had ordered the closure of Nigeria’s land borders and in December 2020, the approval was given for the reopening of the closed borders.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Health, Osagie Ehanire, on Wednesday, noted that Nigerians should expect to receive the COVID-19 vaccine by the end of January 2021.
Ehanire made this claim during the Federal Executive Council meeting presided over by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.
The Minister noted that a technical working group in the Ministry of Health is working on which vaccine will work for Nigerians.
source https://www.naijanews.com/2020/12/17/rice-poultry-other-items-remain-banned-as-fg-reopens-nigerias-land-borders/
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