The United States has criticised Nigeria's handling of the temporary suspension of import duties on key food staples, warning that lack of transparency and poor implementation weakened the policy's impact on inflation and businesses.
In its 2025 Nigeria Investment Climate Statement, the US Department of State noted that the duty-free import window, announced in July 2024 to ease food prices, failed to take off on schedule due to delays and policy bottlenecks.
The plan was meant to suspend duties, tariffs, and taxes on staples such as rice, wheat, maize, and beans for 150 days. However, the report found that bureaucracy and weak execution meant SMEs in the food and agribusiness sectors did not benefit as expected.
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The statement also highlighted persistent challenges in Nigeria's power sector, where regulatory uncertainty and transmission failures continue to force small firms and households to rely heavily on costly generators.
According to the US, Nigeria's economy has faced major headwinds, dropping from Africa's second- to fourth-largest economy by GDP in 2024, partly due to reforms like fuel subsidy removal and exchange rate liberalisation.
Analysts say the missed opportunity in implementing the duty-free food import policy underscores the urgent need for government transparency and efficiency, as SMEs—already struggling with high costs—remain the hardest hit by inflation.
