Lagos targets 20 metric tons p/h rice production

Lagos is to scale up the capacity of state-owned rice processing mill at Imota in Ikorodu to 20 metric tons per hour in collaboration with private investors, in what aims at forcing down Nigeria’s expense on rice imports.

Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, who visited the mill the second time on Tuesday, directed the state ministry of agriculture to immediately begin the process of overhauling the plant to expand its processing capacity to10 metric tons.

Ambode said that the government was leading this process while the private sector would be invited to add additional 10 metric tons to bring the total production to 20 metric tons per hour.

Lagos State government recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Kebbi State government to go into large scale farming with rice production and processing as a major component. The rice is to be majorly cultivated in Kebbi, which has large expanse of arable land, while Lagos do the processing.

The Imota rice-processing mill was commissioned in 2012 to handle 2.5 metric tons per hour. But the production line stopped processing a few years after, with the facilities left to rot.

However, against the backdrop of the MoU between the two states, Ambode said there was an urgent need not only to get the mill running but also upgrade its capacity within the next six months.

“That is the only way we can be clearly said to have intervened seriously and that is the only platform we can use to allow the inflow of rice paddy from Kebbi State. You will all recall that we just signed a MoU with Kebbi State and the intention is that we want a consistent flow of raw materials so that the era of importing rice from abroad would become a thing of the past,” the governor said.

Ambode added that aside Kebbi, Lagos was also looking at possible partnership with other states, saying that on the long run, such collaboration would ensure that residents consume locally processed rice within the next six months.

Meanwhile, Ambode also on Tuesday inspected the new Imota site, proposed for the relocation of the popular Mile 12 Market, where he assured that work would commence next week. He expressed optimism that the relocation would drive commerce and investment into the Imota area, urging residents to gear up to receive the vast number of visitors that would visit the market.

“We are all aware that we had a little crisis at Mile 12 Market in Ketu recently and here is the new site that we are relocating Mile 12 Market to.

“So, our new commodities market would take off from here and so I like to give the Ministry of Physical Planning the directive to commence activities here within the next one week. We believe that if we start within the next seven days, within the next six months, Mile 12 Market Ketu will be a thing of the past.

“We are committed to doing this. We know it is in the interest of all Lagosians that we relocate Mile 12 Market. The marketers themselves have agreed; the onus is now on us to ensure that we deliver this new market within the next six months.

“I want to appeal to people in Imota that you will be having new set of investors; new set of traders and then new set of tenants. You should be very accommodating because we are bringing a whole lot here,” he said.