Lagos charts bold course towards Food Security with Landmark Agricultural investments

By Kudirat Adewale

Lagos State Government has taken significant strides in securing its food future with a series of bold investments and reforms aimed at creating a resilient, inclusive, and sustainable food system for its over 20 million residents.

At a press briefing held on May 6, 2025, at the Bagauda Kaltho Press Centre in Alausa, the Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Systems, Ms Abisola Olusanya, outlined the state’s strategic roadmap under the leadership of Governor Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu over the last six years.

She said the Ministry’s efforts are anchored on a four-pronged approach: boosting domestic food production, forging upcountry partnerships to augment supply, building modern food storage and logistics infrastructure, and developing market systems that leverage Lagos’s strategic role as a port and commercial city.

Olusanya said key value chains being prioritised include poultry, fisheries, piggery, coconut, and horticulture, where Lagos holds a comparative advantage, stressing that these efforts are complemented by collaborations with other states rich in arable land to support the state’s food needs.

Central to the transformation agenda is the Lagos Central Food Security Systems and Logistics Hub in Epe, described by Olusanya as a “flagship project” and the largest food logistics hub in Sub-Saharan Africa when completed.

According to her, the facility, which is in its final construction phase, is designed to handle over 1,500 trucks daily and will serve as a high-tech aggregation, processing, storage, and distribution centre for the state’s N14 trillion food market.

“It will be a game changer in Nigeria’s food sovereignty plan,” she said, adding that the integrated cold and dry storage systems, a 14,000-capacity abattoir, and a dedicated jetty for streamlined transportation will help reduce food prices and post-harvest losses.

The commissioner said the hub is being executed through a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) under a Design-Build-Finance-Operate-and-Transfer (DBFOT) model.

Olusanya explained that covering 400 hectares, the first phase spans 100 hectares and will process over 1.5 million metric tonnes of food annually upon full completion.

Highlighting other achievements, Olusanya cited the successful commissioning of the Lagos Rice Mill in Imota in 2023.

She described it as the largest in Africa and third globally, with the capacity to produce 2.4 million 50kg bags of rice annually, saying that the facility is expected to generate 1,500 direct and over 250,000 indirect jobs.

Additionally, she said the state launched the ₦500 million Ounje Eko Farmers Subsidy Programme in 2025, offering 25% subsidies on animal feeds, tractor services, and fertilisers, particularly targeting poultry and aquaculture farmers.

According to the Commissioner, these initiatives collectively position Lagos as a model for food systems development across Nigeria and West Africa, with several states already replicating aspects of the central hub project.