Economy: Nigerian Bakers To Stop Service February 27

The Association of Master Bakers has disclosed that it will suspend its services across the country on February 27.

The association said the decision is a form of protest against the challenging business conditions in the nation.

This was made known through the Kogi State Chairman, Chief Gabriel Adeniyi, on behalf of the National President, Alhaji Mansur Umar.

According to the association, excessive taxation and the escalating expenses of baking materials are affecting their members.

The Association lamented what it described as the “multifarious increase in the prices of baking materials such as flour, sugar, yeast, vegetable oil, petrol, and diesel occasioned by the fuel subsidy removal and forex deregulation.’’

The union alleged that multiple government agencies, such as the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, NAFDAC, the Standards Organisation of Nigeria, the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency, the Consumers Protection Council, the Department of Weights and Measures, and others, have imposed numerous charges on its members.

It stated, “The Association of Master Bakers and Caterers of Nigeria has critically assessed the state of our business operation and consequently demands the liberalisation of flour and sugar importation, the reduction or total removal of import duties on major baking materials such as flour, sugar, butter, yeast, etc. as applicable to other commodities, as has recently been done by the Federal Government, and the provision of concessionary forex exchange to flour millers and other stakeholders, as well as a reduction of tariffs on imported wheat and sugar.”

The association urged for “prompt execution of financial assistance measures for bakers as part of post-COVID-19 assistance initiatives for small and medium-sized enterprises in the baking industry, especially for those who have experienced a decline of more than 40% in their membership.”