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By Caryn Oseghale
Traders at Ogba Market, Lagos and beyond are raising the alarm over the relentless rise in the cost of foodstuffs, livestock and medicines. They are calling on the government to deliver real support to farmers, herders and pharmaceutical supply chains.
For many, business has plunged as customers can no longer afford to buy in bulk. Madam Grace Ike, a foodstuff seller at Ogba Market, lamented:
“For the past two years, business has not been like before. Sales have seriously dropped. Before, people could buy a bag of rice, basket of tomato, or a full tuber of yam. But now, because everything is expensive”. Traders say the surge in prices goes beyond exchange rate volatility, it’s worsened by soaring transport and farming costs.
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A meat seller, who preferred anonymity, echoed the frustration, noting that the cost of rearing and transporting animals has jumped due to high fuel prices. He added pointedly:
But the pain extends beyond food sellers. The pharmaceutical sector is also groaning. Ibukun Lois Ezekiel, a dermatologist pharmacist at JBC Pharmacy, revealed: “Crazily, the drugs have increased about twice the prices in the last 1–2 years. A few antimalarials remain affordable, but most medicines have climbed beyond the reach of ordinary buyers.”
From rice and tomatoes to beef and basic medicines, everyday essentials are slipping out of reach for ordinary Nigerians. Sellers and professionals alike insist that only direct, transparent support to producers, not subsidies captured by middlemen, can ease the burden. “If the government supports farmers with fertilizer, seed and things that they need, the foodstuff will be much and the transport cost will reduce too,” Grace urged.
Until then, the market’s verdict is clear: relief is overdue, and patience is running thin.
