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| Lagos State Commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget, Mr. Samuel Egube; Special Adviser to the Governor on Sustainable Development Goals and Investment, Mrs. Solape Hammond; Deputy Consul-General of the Kingdom of Netherlands, Mr. Arie Plieger; Deputy Governor, Dr. Kadri Obafemi Hamzat and Commissioner for Agriculture, Ms. Abisola Olusanya, at the symposium held in Eko Hotels & Suites, Victoria Island. |
To achieve this, the State, through the Ministry of
Agriculture is forging a collaboration with the government of Netherlands to
develop Urban Farming.
At a Symposium held in Lagos with the theme ‘Urban Farming:
“Feeding the Cities”, stakeholders in the Nigerian urban farming sector used
the occasion to network with thier Dutch counterparts.
Both agreed on collective actions towards embracing the
practice of Urban Farming on a commercial scale.
The event, organised by the Consulate General of the Kingdom
of the Netherlands in collaboration with the Lagos State Ministry of
Agriculture, was designed to periscope into the prospects of Urban Farming in
Lagos State and Southwest Nigeria.
Netherlands is the 2nd largest exporter of Agricultural
produce in the World and in terms of land mass and size, it shares similitude
with Lagos.
The State is therefore activating this collaboration in
order to be shown the path towards application of technologies to enhance
protected horticulture in the State.
Migration population
The Lagos State Governor Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu explained
that the continuous and increasing influx of unplanned migrant population has
continued to create a large demand and supply gap for food generally, stressing
the need to bridge the gap.
Governor Sanwo-Olu said that Lagos has smallest geographical
space in the country, but must leverage on its exponential growth to evolve.
He said; “Rapid urbanisation in Africa is accompanied by the
growth of urban poverty and food insecurity. Other causes of urban food
insecurity in Africa are the high rate of unemployment, high food prices and
malnutrition. The urban growth rate in Africa is about 3.5% which is the
highest among all continents of the world. The problem of urban food insecurity
in most countries has been solved through a pragmatic and innovative approach
to the development of the agriculture sector.
“The popularisation of urban agriculture through the
production of fruits and vegetables, plants, rearing of livestock within and
around cities, community gardening, rooftop gardening, urban forest gardening,
green walls, vertical farms, beekeeping amongst others shall ensure that the
citizens have a steady stream of income while overcoming the challenge of food
scarcity and hunger.”
The Governor stated that the State had embarked on numerous
initiative aimed at given agriculture production a great boost by making Food
Security one of the cardinal programmes of its Agenda and a key strategy
towards making Lagos a 21st Century economy.
He also explained that scarcity of land has led to the need
to look inwards, to the possibility of cultivation of crops with less reliance
on land which has brought about the birth of Urban Farming that offers the
opportunity of providing healthier diets, creating jobs and generating income
for the people.
The Governor was represented by his Deputy, Dr. Obafemi
Hamzat at the occasion.
Bilateral cooperation
The Deputy Consul General of the kingdom of the Netherlands,
Mr. Arie Plieger acknowledged the interest of Lagos to develop the horticulture
and green house farming.
He stated that his country has intensified bilateral
cooperation with Lagos State in the area of social economy.
While stressing that the land mass of the State was not
sufficient like that of Netherlands, Plieger urged Lagos State to explore the
strength of the young talented workforce to actualise the initiative.
According to him, the key for collaboration is to understand
each other’s reality, especially for Dutch non-institution and private sector
players to understand the dynamics of Southwest Nigeria.
He said; “During this year, we hope to get a mission from
Nigeria to the Netherlands which will involve critical stakeholders as well as
Dutch mission coming into Nigeria, so as to be able to connect with each
other’s reality and this will form a path towards achieving the partnership.”
Technologies adoption
In her address of welcome, the Commissioner for Agriculture
in Lagos State, Ms. Abisola Olusanya emphasised the need for adoption of some
of the technologies that have helped Netherlands to triumph in the area of
Agriculture which would boost the local production and consumption.
Ms Olusanya said; ” with the population of Lagos State at
about 22 million, the importance of food security cannot be over emphasised and
increasing urban farming is not just a government goal, but also a necessity
considering the anticipated population growth to 30 million by the year 2030.
“It is important to note that the prospects of Urban Farming
in Lagos State is paramount to the present administration as it will lead to
availability of nutritious and healthy foods, create employment for our teeming
youths and equally act as source of raw materials for the various manufacturing
industries requiring the agricultural produce for their products. In the long
run the chain will lead to generation of revenue, for government, to keep up
with the duty of development and provision of infrastructure for the general
populace.”
She said; “We may not be exporter of goods globally, but In
Nigeria, we should be self sufficient, by ensuring that we are able to export
to at least export good to other West Africa countries and in Lagos, we should
be able to export to other states.”
Ms Olusanya however affirmed that the vibrancy that the
State government brought to Agriculture in the past few years would also
reflect on the Urban Farming initiative after appropriate adoption.
Proper match-making
Participants at the event lauded the match-making of
Netherlands and Lagos on Green house farming with the believe that such
initiative would bring more younger ones into its fold, particularly those already
edging away from traditional farming.
They also harped on the need for proper funding of
Agriculture, security, insurance of assets, access to finance, research,
training and education as well as ensuring provision of power supply.
Urban farming comes with great benefits, with it’s
adaptability, accessibility, which aids the provision of inexpensive fresh
produce particularly to low income communities.
It also builds bonds by stimulating the economy and
providing a mutually beneficial experience, reduces the need for huge capital
outlay for land purchase.
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