The Lagos State Government
has empowered 3,149 farmers, processors and marketers to mark this year’s World Food Day celebration.
The beneficiaries were empowered with inputs including smoking kilns, battery cages, outboard engines, juveniles, fertilizers, male cattle and agro chemicals among others.
They had earlier been trained under the State College of Cooperatives of the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives.
Governor Babatunde Fashola, at a programme to mark the Day in Lagos, urged the beneficiaries to pay their taxes when they become successful in their various fields of endeavour.
Fashola said that the best way to distribute wealth across board was for the beneficiaries to give back to the government so that more people could benefit.
“This project is possible because of revenue generated from eligible tax payers; so I urge you to pay your taxes when you become successful.
“This is a way of actualising the growth of agricultural produce and also to develop the various value chains in agriculture,’’ the governor said.
He, however, tasked the beneficiaries to put the inputs to good use, noting that only then could food security be achieved.
Fashola urged Nigerians to imbibe the culture of food conservation in order to curb waste and boost food security.
The governor said the problem of food insufficiency would be substantially addressed if everyone imbibed the culture of conserving food.
He said that the big irony in most nations, including Nigeria, was that while some people had too much to eat, others had nothing to feed on.
According to him, neither of the two extremes is desirable and there is a need to attain a balance to narrow the gap.
Fashola said the state government had initiated a number of programmes to boost food security in the state and empower its residents.
He listed the initiatives to include the establishment of a poultry estate in Ikorodu, rice and vegetable farms in Badagry area of the state.
The governor enjoined young people to show interest in farming as it was a sure way to empower themselves and contribute to economic development.
Also, the Commissioner for Agriculture, Mr Gbolahan Lawal, said that the government was supporting farmers to grow their businesses.
Lawal said the government had also provided land titles to no fewer than 200 farmers with which they could access credit facilities in the bank.
He said that farmers were also provided with inputs, adding that the idea of farm estate with joint equipment and facilities was to reduce the operating costs of farmers.
Lawal also emphasised that small-scale agro processing and retailing are important sources of income for the lowest income earners in the state.
He said that there was provision of necessary infrastructure, introduction to modern farming technology and extension services in established farm settlements and other farms across Lagos.
Lawal said with the development, “It is critical that these categories of farmers and marketers be provided with quality input and extended market.
“The goal of this year’s event is to share prosperity through this agricultural value chains empowerment.’’
World Food Day is celebrated annually worldwide on Oct. 16, in honour of the date of the founding the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations in 1945.
The Tide source reports that this year’s ceremony has as its theme: “Family Farming, Feeding the World, Caring for the Earth.