Lagos supports 10,000 farmers with inputs

The Lagos State Government has appealed to residents to increase their involvement in subsistence farming towards self-sufficiency, job creation, and food security.

The State Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Systems, Abisola Olusanya, made the appeal at the presentation of agricultural inputs and productive assets to beneficiaries in the Oko-Oba area of Agege.

According to a Thursday statement, the commissioner disclosed that about 10,000 beneficiaries that cut across fishermen, aquaculture, poultry, piggery, and vegetable farmers benefited from the 4th cycle distribution of the farm inputs.

“Olusanya noted that the programme was a collaboration between the federal and state governments and the World Bank under the COVID-19 Action Recovery Scheme.

“The farmers are expected to supply produce from their farms for sale at the return of the 25 per cent discount Sunday Market in the state,” the statement said.

The Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Emmanuel Audu, and the Special Adviser to the Governor on Agriculture and Food Systems, Dr Oluwarotimi Fashola, urged the beneficiaries to ensure judicious deployment of the farm inputs.

On his part, Jonathan Obayemi, who is the State Project Coordinator, Lagos CARES Result Area 2, thanked the governor for the prompt approval of the farm inputs and supplements.

A farmer from Ikeja Military Cantonment, Josephine Iliya, who thanked the state through FADAMA for their positive intervention, expressed surprise with the farm inputs support.

Some of the farm inputs distributed to farmers include 32,750 fish juvenile, 4,740 bags of poultry feeds, 61,500 day-old chick, 1,004 bags of fertilizers, 596 kilos of vegetable seed, 2,198 bundles of fishing nets, 72 canoes, 351 litres of Agro chemical and 25 water tanks.

The wife of the Lagos State Governor, Dr. Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu, on Thursday finalised the selection of 200 participants to partake in the nationwide farming competition for female first-time farmers.

The scheme, tagged “Every Home A Garden,” is a competition under the Renewed Hope Initiative organised by the President’s wife, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, and is set to have the winner bagging a N20m prize.

Dr. Ibijoke, at a press conference and seminar organised for the selected Lagos participants at the State House, Ikeja, said the state would deploy all resources to ensure the winner emerged from Lagos.