Lagos Commissioner Pledges To Monitor Agricultural Investments

Lagos Commissioner Pledges To Monitor Agricultural Investments

Lagos State Commissioner for Agriculture, Abisola Olusanya, announced plans to monitor agricultural investments to ensure state support and accountability throughout the food value chain. Speaking at the Agriculture & Allied Group 2024 Symposium/Fair organized by the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Olusanya outlined the government’s strategy to develop major food logistics hubs and other intermediate facilities to trace food items effectively……CONTINUE READING 

She emphasized the need for the government to track the journey of its investments from farms to market, rather than just measuring yield outcomes. “It is important that we follow up on the support provided to farmers and not merely report on yields and quantities,” Olusanya said.

The commissioner explained that the Ministry of Agriculture would analyze market trends, production costs, and final landed costs. This approach aims to trace the flow of food products through various distributors and determine the final selling prices to market vendors.

Olusanya stressed that this system would help ensure accountability within the food value chain and prevent middlemen from disproportionately benefiting at the expense of farmers. She also noted the opening of the Mushin Fresh Food Hub in December 2023, which facilitates data collection and food reserve management.

LCCI President Gabriel Idahosa highlighted concerning statistics on food inflation and food insecurity in Nigeria. With food inflation at 40.87% and food-insecure Nigerians rising from 66.2 million in Q1 2023 to 100 million in Q1 2024, including 18.6 million facing acute hunger, he stressed the urgency for local food production capacity building. Idahosa supported the Federal Government’s import waivers but called for targeted programs to enhance local food production.