PLANS are underway by the Federal Government to launch a new programme aimed at strengthening Nigeria’s wheat-based consumer foods industry.

The new initiative focus on production costs, enterprise competitiveness, financing, and the development of local value chains.

The initiative, ‘Project WHEAT-NESS’, targets improving the competitiveness of businesses across the industry, including millers, bakeries, food manufacturers, and Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs), amid Nigeria’s dependence on imported wheat.

Nigeria consumes and imports an estimated six to seven million metric tonnes of wheat annually, exposing the industry to fluctuations in international commodity prices, foreign exchange conditions and supply-chain costs.

The office of the Minister of State for Industry under the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment said the launch will bring together government officials, private-sector operators, financial institutions, research organisations and development partners in Abuja.

According to the ministry, WHEAT-NESS seeks to address constraints across the wheat-based foods value chain, from agricultural production and input supply to aggregation, milling, processing, baking, logistics, distribution and retail.

The initiative will operate through four intervention areas: value-chain development, enterprise development, a Made-in-Nigeria marketing campaign and a proposed Wheat-Based Consumer Foods Value Chain Development Fund.

The value-chain component is expected to focus on improving domestic supply, productive capacity, industrial integration, and operational efficiency. At the same time, enterprise development will target productivity and growth capacity for MSMEs and downstream businesses.

The proposed marketing campaign is intended to strengthen consumer confidence in competitive Nigerian-made foods. At the same time, the development fund is expected to mobilise financing and investment for viable opportunities across the sector.

The programme comes against the backdrop of the cost pressures confronting food manufacturers and businesses that rely on imported raw materials. However, the ministry’s announcement did not set measurable targets to reduce import dependence, lower production costs, or increase domestic wheat output.

At the launch, stakeholders are expected to examine constraints affecting supply, industrial competitiveness, bakery productivity, product affordability, market access, financing and infrastructure.

The engagement will also seek to identify potential partnerships, investment opportunities, and areas that require further technical assessment before the ministry develops specific interventions.

The ministry said the event would produce a register of priority issues, potential collaboration opportunities, diagnostic questions for subsequent technical work, and possible early-action areas for the Programme Delivery Unit to consider.

However, the programme’s technical workstreams will undertake detailed baseline studies, diagnostics, and intervention design separately.