On Friday, hundreds of local bread bakers, known as ‘Gurasa’ bakers in Hausa, took to the streets in Kano State to protest against the escalating price of flour.
The demonstration, led by predominantly women Gurasa bakers, a popular local delicacy, unfolded at Chediyar Yangurasa in the Dala Local Government Area of the state.
The protesters brandished placards with messages written in both Hausa and English, conveying concerns such as “High costs of flour are our business,” “High flour prices unacceptable,” and “Flour price is too high in Nigeria; we need help,” among others.
Fatima Auwal, the chairperson of the Kano State Gurasa Bakers Association, addressed journalists during the protest, highlighting the severe impact of soaring flour prices on their businesses.
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According to Auwal, over half of the bakers have been forced out of business due to the exorbitant cost of flour.
The protest, which began when the price of flour was N16,000 per bag, now contends with a staggering N43,000 per 50kg bag.
Auwal specifically pointed out IRS Flour, produced by BUA, as the essential ingredient for Gurasa production, appealing to the manufacturing company to consider their plight and make the price more affordable.
Auwal stated, “We are out here on the streets protesting to let the leaders know the situation we have found ourselves in at the moment. This has been our business for long but it is facing a great threat due to the rise in the price of flour.”
She continued, “We started the protest since a 50kg bag of flour was N16,000, now it is N43,000 and we cannot afford it. We solely use IRS Flour produced by BUA because it is the best for our production but the price is too high for us. We, therefore, appeal to BUA, other flour mills, and the Federal Government to intervene and come to our rescue.”
Highlighting the economic hardship faced by the predominantly women-run small-scale business, Auwal pleaded for assistance, stating, “We are in a very difficult situation, we need help. This is a small-scale business mostly run by women. Life is becoming more difficult for us. We hardly feed or send our children to school due to this hardship. Many have lost their capital. Only 25 percent of us are now in the business as many others have closed down due to lack of capital.”
Efforts to contact the management of BUA company in Kano were unsuccessful as major dealers could not be reached at the time of filing this report.
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