Lagos has urged foreign and local investors to explore its rice market estimated at N5 billion.
Speaking at a forum entitled: Urban farming: Feeding the cities in Lagos, Commissioner for Agriculture, Ms. Abisola Olusanya explained that the since COVID-19 pandemic, the supply of rice and other food stuff from other parts of the country has been impacted by logistics and other challenges. Inadequate supply, according to her, has led to food prices shooting up.
To revamp this, the commissioner said the government was setting up market hubs for storage and food processing. Apart from the hubs providing a mechanism to enhance food traceability and prevent the spread of diseases, the commissioner reiterated that Lagos was determined to address cold chains and infrastructure needs across the state. One of these was through the development of agro processing facilities.
Ms Olusanya noted that the knowledge sharing and networking programme on urban garming was organised by the Consulate-General of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, in collaboration with the Lagos State Ministry of Agriculture.
According to her, the Lagos State Government has set for itself the target to increase the quantity of food it produces and consumes from 20 – 24 per cent to 40 – 50 per cent by 2025.
Her words: “With the population of Lagos State at about 22 million, the importance of food security cannot be over emphasised and increasing urban farming is not just a government goal, but also a necessity considering the anticipated population growth to 30 million by 2030.”
She noted : “ it is of essence to note that the prospects of urban farming in Lagos State is paramount to the present administration as it will lead to availability of nutritious and healthy foods, create employment for our teeming youths and equally act as source of raw materials for the various manufacturing industries requiring the agricultural produce for their products. In the long run the chain will lead to generation of revenue, for government, to keep up with the duty of development and provision of infrastructure for the general populace.”
She recalled the appeal to residents to embrace the practice of urban farming as one of the ways to attain food sufficiency.
She added that the forum was to provide a platform for all stakeholders to meet, share ideas, network and agree on collective actions towards embracing urban farming on a commercial level while fashioning a way to transit existing land cultivation to urban/ protected horticulture and modernised agriculture.
Netherland Deputy Consul General to Nigeria, Arie Plieger believes Lagos can become a global hub for food production if it taps into its huge, untapped agricultural potential.
According to him, Netherlands partnership with Lagos would result in new and innovative solutions, towards strengthening supply chain and paving the way to food security.
With Lagos’ ambition to produce enough food locally to meet the state nutritional needs he noted that achieving long-term food security was more urgent than ever.
He added that exploring Netherlands’ expertise in urban farming would contribute considerably to food security.