The Farmers and Fishermen Forum of Olorunda Local Council Development Area (LCDA), Badagry, Lagos State celebrated the World Food Day in the area, yesterday, 16th October 2020.
The event which was held at Anglican Primary School, Aradagun, with the global theme, “Grow, Nourish and sustain together” is the first of its kind to be celebrated in the Olorunda LCDA and it has given fishers and farmers at the grassroots level opportunity to showcase their farm produce for the development of the area and Lagos State as a whole.
In the keynote address of the Chairman of the LCDA, Hon. Samson Olatunde, he said, There is no doubt, the state and by extension the local government needs to grow into a more productive agricultural labour force. This becomes imperative because of the rampant unemployment and the vacuum being created by the aged farmers, who are retiring from active farming and the possible effects of the global crisis”.
Hon. Samson also noted that the LCDA is committed to the attainment of sustainable food production, wealth and job creation through youth and women empowerment with significant private sector involvement, adding that Lagos State development plan in agriculture is to move the present local food production from 18% to 25% of the state’s demand by Year 2025.
Mr. Macaulay, who represented the Governor from the Ministry of Agriculture, Lagos State, stated that Lagos State government is not dealing with farmers individually but collectively, stressing that farmers need to register at least under a farmer and cooperative group, in order for them to enjoy government benefits such as empowerment and loans.
In the same vein, the Leader of the Farmers Forum in Olorunda LCDA, Mr. Emakpor Armstrong, noted that the programme intends to promote agriculture in Badagry and to assure Lagosians that Lagos State has enough land for production.
“Our yearly participation in the World Food Day programme shows that truly in Olorunda LCDA, there are farmers, core farmers whose profession are farming”. He said.
The ceremony, which was graced by Farmers and Fishermen who displayed farm produce in large quantities ranging from tubers of yam, bunch of bananas, palm kernel, tomatoes and varieties of livestock produced by people from the LCDA, also had the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund officials in attendance, as they were on ground to grant loans to the farmers to help sustain and maintain their farm production.
Add Comment