Lagos seeks partnership to grow agriculture

Governor of Lagos State Akinwunmi Ambode says the state is looking at partnership in agro business in what aims at increasing production and ensuring food security in the state.

This is as Pat Utomi, a businessman, has revealed plans by a group of investors from United Arab Emirate (UAE) to invest $10 billion in the state within a period of time.

Ambode spoke on Wednesday when he received Sean Hoy, Irish ambassador, at the Lagos House, Alausa, saying the plan was to expand the agro sector and increase the capacity of farmers in the state in nearest future.

BusinessDay recalls that the state government under former governor, Babatunde Fashola, had set the target for Lagos to meet 80 percent of its food security through local production by 2020. The state currently depends, almost 70 percent, on imported foods from within and outside Nigeria.

“One area that Lagos is really interested in is in the agro business. I am very interested in the food security of this state. We have a population that is over 20 million and we should be able to plan properly the food security of the state.

“We cannot claim that we are self sufficient right now, but we have a plan to be able to let us feed ourselves at some point in time. It’s quite unfortunate right now that the state consumes almost like N300 billion worth of rice annually, and what we have in terms of production is maybe like 5 percent.

“We are looking for a situation where we would expand the potentials of our farmers and cross into other states and be able to produce staple products for the people of Lagos. So, if we have any partnership that can assist us in securing the future of our people in terms of agro business will be highly welcomed,” Ambode said.

The governor, who also met with a team of investors from the UAE, led by Pat Utomi, stated the readiness of his administration to evolve policies and initiatives that would transform the state into a destination for investors across the globe.

Utomi, on his part, said the group of investors was aspiring to play a role that would significantly change the business climate in the state, revealing that they were looking to invest as much as $10billion in the state within a period of time.

“Smart City Dubai, which has a track record of transforming a desert village in one generation to the world’s business hub, my hope and my expectation is that this initiative will make that happen for Lagos and be part of the inspiration along with other projects that you are driving, Eko Atlantic and a host of others,” Utomi said.