Lagos Lawmakers Push For Joint Efforts To Combat Food Insecurity

Lawmakers in the Lagos State House of Assembly convened on Friday with their constituents in a collective effort to address food security concerns and boost self-sufficiency across the state.

While addressing his constituents in Agege Constituency 1, Speaker of the House, Rt. Hon. Mudashiru Obasa, pointed out that food insecurity is a multifaceted problem that calls for joint action from the government and community members.

He stressed that achieving food security aligns with the United Nations’ sustainable development goal of eradicating poverty.

“We at the Lagos State House of Assembly are committed to making Lagos an producing state and not just a consuming state in the agriculture value chain to tackle the present-day reality of food insufficiency.

“Our commitment is exemplified through transformational laws and policy supervision in the agricultural sector,” Obasa said.

He noted the government’s significant achievements in agriculture with the support of the Assembly.

Among these initiatives are the 34-hectare Ikorodu Fish Farm Estate, designed to produce and process 10,000 tons of fish annually with the collaboration of 400 local fish farmers, as well as the AGRIC-YES program and the Oke-Aro and Gberigbe Pig Farm Estates, which support 1,200 farmers and can process 88,000 pigs annually.

Obasa also underscored the Assembly’s legislative support for agriculture, including the 2021 anti-open grazing law, aimed at promoting a safe environment for farming and livestock management.

“It is important to reiterate that, on our part as lawmakers, we have also created an enabling environment for farming activities to thrive in the state, particularly through the passage of anti-open grazing of livestock Law in September, 2021,” he added.

Obasa called for further expansion of farming capacity and encouraged residents to explore animal husbandry as a means of contributing to food security in the state.

Agege Local Government Chairman, Ganiyu Egunjobi, speaking at the meeting, pointed to issues such as insecurity and the lack of accessible, low-interest loans for youth as major contributors to the food crisis.

“This meeting cannot come at a better time. The problem responsible for the food shortage are many among which are insecurity that has prevented many farmers from accessing their farms. Farming in Nigeria is no longer attractive to the teeming youths.

“I want to suggest to the government at all levels to subsidise farming and also give loans at very low interest to farmers. The government should also improve on existing physical infrastructures in farming communities that would discourage urban migration and encourage youths to embrace farming. Farming and youth unemployment are recurring issues which require multidimensional interventions to tackle,” Egunjobi said.

Keynote speaker Dr. Akinyemi Olusegun from the Lagos State Ministry of Agriculture urged residents to consider urban farming as a solution to meet the city’s food demands.

“In Lagos, we are more than 22 million and as a result we have a huge need for food. People want to eat and engage in food business,” he noted, encouraging youth to focus on local, home-grown farming solutions.