Hundreds Of Women Storm Streets Of Kano, Protest Flour Hike, Cost Of Living

Hundreds of women, including local bread producers known as “Gurasa” in Kano, Nigeria, marched through the streets to protest the high cost of living, particularly the increase in the price of flour used for producing the staple food.

VerseNews reports that the women, many widows, chanted slogans demanding assistance and highlighting the challenges they face in providing for their families.

Their placards read; “Government must do something urgently on the hyper rise of cost of flour’, ”We need government intervention, save our lives.”

The Chairperson of the Women Gurasa Producers, Fatima Auwal Chediyar Yangurasa, said before now, they buy a 50kg Bag of flour at less than N16,000 but in less than a month the price has skyrocketed to N43,000.

She said, “Life has gradually become difficult for us with many of our members being imprisoned because of debts and their children left to wallow in destitution and abject poverty”.

Fatima added that in Kano, hundreds of children of their members have been sent out of school as their parents can no longer provide for them through the only business they have.

She said, “BUA Floor was the one we largely depend on and it is no longer available in the market because of its high price, most of our members use the BUA products because it yields enough Gurasa for sales”.

The Chairperson also called on the Chairman of BUA, Abdussamad Isiyaku Rabiu to do more by reducing the prices of his flour and consider the difficulties the producers face in their businesses.

She said, “We started the protest against the hike in the price of flour by BUA Flour mills when a bag was sold at N16,000, demanding immediate reversal but today despite our stance the price has reached a whooping N43,000 far bag”.

They expressed concerns about the rising prices of essential commodities and called on leaders to address the economic difficulties affecting small-scale businesses.

The protesters emphasized the impact of inflation on their ability to sustain their livelihoods and urged authorities to intervene in the matter.