The Department of State Services has collaborated with the Central Bank of Nigeria to intensify the Federal Government’s fight against the smuggling of foreign products as measures to promote the production and consumption of locally made products.

The Central Bank of Nigeria at a press conference in Yola announced that 1207 bags of foreign rice have been impounded by officers of the DSS.

CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele who was represented by Yola branch controller, Jatau Satu, said the new partnership was aimed at enhancing the rapid growth of Nigeria’s economy leveraging on the agricultural sector to boost the country’s foreign exchange.

Jatau noted that so far a number of contraband have been seized by the DSS following raids on many properties where the contrabands were concealed.

“The DSS raided some places and recover stockpiled in these houses four different items rice 1,207 bags of foreign rice, ten jerry cans of groundnut oil, 58 bottles of energy drinks and 83 bags of sugar.

“We all know the efforts of the federal government in diversifying the economic base of the country, especially from a crude oil-dependent economy to more comparatively advantageous resources in agriculture.

“For a long time the CBN has actually been complimenting the effort of the federal government in that respect especially given our intervention programs in various sectors of the economy particularly agricultural sector,” he said.

He noted that to achieve the diversification drive, the CBN has evolved a number of strategies including the Anchor Borrowers program, to ensure the growth of the agricultural sector.

He further stressed that the scheme has so far recorded success in a number of areas but noted with dismay that the activities of smugglers are trying to hamper the successes so far achieved hence the new cooperation between the CBN and the DSS.

He noted that in view of Nigeria’s vast porous borders and the scant number of customs operatives to man them, the partnership with the DSS became imperative noting that so far the cooperation has led to the seizure of a number of contraband smuggled into the country.

Jatau noted that the DSS is planning to distribute the impounded food items to the IDPs camps, the motherless baby homes and orphanages, organized almajiri houses, and religious organization that has organized IDP camps.