Food Crisis: Sanwo-Olu charges Lagos farmers on collaboration with colleagues
By Adeola Ogunrinde
Amid high cost of food stuff in the state, Lagos State Governor on Monday urged farmers to collaborate with their colleagues in other states to enable them bring produce and sell in Lagos.
Sanwo-Olu gave the charge on Monday during the Grand Finale of the Year 2023 World Food Day Celebrations, themed: “Water is Life, Water is Food, Leave No One Behind,” at the Police College Parade, Ikeja.
Sanwo-Olu said the state government is committed to encouraging farmers, adding that government has integrated plans to bring about infrastructure and funding to ensure food sufficiency in the state.
Stating his administration’s commitment to ensuring that food is always affordable and accessible to the state’s residents, Sanwo-Olu added: “We know that the price of food appears to have gone up, but with interventions like these such as bringing market close to the consumers, am sure that all the produce brought here today will be picked up and bought.
“All we are doing today is to ensure that there is access from them.”
“We have a robust integrated plan of ensuring that food sufficiency and food adequacy in Lagos is secured. Since food security globally is becoming an issue, as a government, we need to have a market for the farmers and we need to help our residents,” he added.
Sanwo-Olu said the celebration is to encourage all the farmers in the state, saying farming is important to his administration to ensure that food is affordable and accessible for all.
Affirming that his government fully supports farmers in Lagos, the governor added: “The event is really to come out and encourage all our famers and all the interventions they have, using the Appeals project. They have added a lot of value and some of them are even for exports.”
The governor said his administration is building the largest food logistics hub in West Africa, dislosing that phase one of the project would be commissioned next year so as to ensure food sufficiency and security in Lagos.
He said the government had achieved a lot through the APPEALS Project, restating his administration’s commitment to the theme of this year’s 2023 World in order not to leave any one behind.
Earlier, the state’s Commissioner for Agriculture, Ms. Abisola Olusanya said the day was set aside to encourage action on food insecurity, promote the production and consumption of safe food.
She said ‘’This year’s edition with the theme, Water is Life, Water is Food, Leave No One Behind, comes up in the wake of serious food security issues which requires urgent actions to scale production across the various value chains”.
