NIGERIANS may be in for endless wait for the amelioration of the pains of the rising cost of food in the country in response to global food crisis, as some state governments officials now sell allocations from strategic grains reserve to a cartel of commodity traders, instead of releasing same to the populace.

Attacks on aid workers and threats to ships delivering food aid to Somalia, coupled with the effects of drought and poor harvest, have left millions in the strife-torn nation in need of urgent aid, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) said today.

A SADC Summit, due to meet in South Africa in August, could find itself confronted with a serious decision to make regarding one of their member states, Zimbabwe.

Malawi, riding high on recent cereal surpluses, is hedging its bets against inclement weather disrupting its good fortune by using a financial derivative to offset agricultural risk.

ZIMBABWE'S economic policies have degenerated from the absurd to the ridiculous.

The United Nations World Food Programme said today that attacks on aid workers on the ground and threats to ships delivering food aid to Somalia, are jeopardising the lives of millions who now need urgent food assistance.

There were more startling revelations at the ongoing probe of the Senate adhoc Committee on Food Crisis as officials of the Ministry of Agriculture yesterday revealed that emirs and senators took possession of 65,755 tones of grains meant for masses.

Thousands of protestors marched in the city of Bobo-Dioulasso on 15 March complaining of high food prices.

A 10-person tribunal of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), sitting in Windhoek, had began this week to hear a petition by 78 Zimbabwean white commercial farmers to have government's controversial farm eviction laws overturned.

Inadequate vegetable seeds, water, insecticides, garden materials, storage facilities, a competitive market, as well as a good fence is causing a lot of damages in the agricultural sector and indeed hindering good harvest in all farming and gardening activities.

According to the preliminary report of the Central Statistical Office of 1991, the rural areas account for 58 percent of the population while the urban areas account for 42 percent.

An operation to recover a record 7 000 livestock that were stolen a year ago in the Khorixas area has failed. To date, most livestock owners in the region have not got their stolen animals back. The animals are still in the hands of the accused persons.

Farmers in Kano State are yet to take delivery of fertilizer allocation from the state ministry of agriculture many months after sale of the commodity was launched by Governor Ibrahim Shekarau.

"We cannot speak of good governance without good communication," says Moussa Sawadogo, a consultant in communication science and techniques who was in the country recently to train journalists and PR officers. "We need to communicate to people to let them know what the government is doing as it serves national interest."

PROMINENT Nigerians including senators and emirs were yesterday named as beneficiaries in the Federal Government's distribution from the strategic grain reserve.

FOR the country to produce intensively to satisfy our domestic requirements and have surplus for exports, there has to be an enabling environment for rice production and processing, according to Chairman, Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria, RIFAN, Alhajji Abubakar Wodi.

MINISTER of Agriculture and Water Resources, Dr. Sayyadi Ruma has said in Abuja that high price of rice was an opportunity for Nigeria to become a major player in rice production and export to the African continent, pointing out that Nigeria could produce enough rice, but the problem "is that of the production of quality rice."

A Farm Workers Summit in the Northern Cape is expected to look at measures aimed at improving the quality of life for farm workers.

The Senate Ad-Hoc Committee on Food Crisis yesterday faulted the Ministry of Agriculture over the N10.5 billion Special Allocation for grain procurement as strategic food reserve of the federation.

An uneasy calm has engulfed Mangongo in Ogori-Magongo local government area of Kogi State, following the sudden death of three members of the same family over alleged food poison.

FARMERS' organisations yesterday expressed outrage at the failure by fertilizer companies to fulfil their pleage to produce the commodity in time for the forthcoming summer cropping season despite being allocated US$10 million by the central bank.

THE Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) has so far sold 260 kilograms of tobacco seed in preparation for the forthcoming tobacco farming season.

Leading miller and foodstuff manufacturer, Blue Ribbon Industries on Wednesday called on the Government to urgently allocate it grain to save it from closing and sending thousands of workers home.

Senate Ad-hoc Committee probing food crisis in the country yesterday revealed how state governments, some northern emirs, federal legislators and other prominent Nigerians shared the 65.755 metric tonnes of grains in the strategic reserve for the year 2008.

The UPDF Chief of Defence Forces, Gen. Aronda Nyakairima, has urged the wives of soldiers to engage in income-generating activities to supplement the earnings of their spouses.