By Suleiman Yakubu

For the second time in a week, the Niger and Lagos state governments have signed a multi-billion-naira Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), but this time around with Lagos Rice Company and Lagos Commodity Future Exchange for the production of rice.
In the agreement, the state private enterprise Niger Foods Limited will produce 300,000 tonnes of rice on 20,000 hectares of farmland in Niger State, while the Lagos Rice Company will off-take the rice, and the Lagos Commodity Exchange will support the project with N100 billion.
The agreement was sealed at the Government House in Minna, where the Chairman of Niger Foods Security Systems and Logistics Company, Sammy Adigun, signed on behalf of the Niger State government, while the CEO of Lagos Rice Company, Dr. Oluwarotimi Fashola, and the CEO of Lagos Commodity and Future Exchange, Dr. Akinsola Akeredolu, signed on behalf of the Lagos State government.
In a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Mal. Bologi Ibrahim, Governor Umaru Bago described the agreement as unprecedented and said the deal will be beneficial to both states.
The statement by the CPS quoted the governor as saying the agreement was in tandem with President Tinubu's food security agenda and would, to a great extent, empower farmers in Niger State.
He disclosed that a similar agreement will soon be signed with the Ogun State government, stressing that his administration is ready to collaborate with other state governments for mutual benefit and will also do its best to ensure the private sector thrives.
In their separate remarks, the CEO of Lagos Rice Company, Dr. Oluwarotimi Fashola, and the CEO of Lagos Commodity and Future Exchange, Akinsola Akeredolu, commended Governor Bago for his dogged efforts at revamping the agricultural sector, which has over the years been neglected.
They all expressed hope that Niger State will be on the global map as one of the biggest agricultural hubs, considering the zeal and determination of the farmer governor.

By Suleiman Yakubu

Minister of State for Agriculture, Dr. Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi, has congratulated the “Farmer Governor” of Niger State, His Excellency, Mohammed Umaru Bago, on his investiture as the Leadership Newspapers “Governor of the Year 2023.”.
Abdullahi, in a message he personally signed, said the honour, coming just nine months into Bago’s first term in office, is an appropriate recognition of his dedicated focus on delivering meaningful governance to Niger State, as evidenced by urban renewal, investment in infrastructure, and rural transformation.
“You are truly living your conviction by walking your talk,” the minister, who is Baraden Borgu, said.
“Like many Nigerlites, I am excited about your commitment to harnessing the immense natural endowments of Niger State to boost agricultural production in dimensions that can only be revolutionary.
“When President Bola Ahmed Tinubu declared a state of emergency on food security, he directed that 500,000 hectares of arable land be brought under cultivation country-wide. But Your Excellency has responded to that clarion call by taking practical and visible steps to bring at least one million hectares of fertile land into agricultural production in Niger State. As a vindication, hundreds of high-capacity tractors and harvesters, ordered by the state government, have been delivered along with complementary implements that will boost mechanisation and other sustainable agronomic practices.
“The Leadership Newspapers Award is a motivator for Your Excellency to keep your eyes on the ball as you strive methodically to alter the governance narrative of Niger State. Not surprisingly, a day after the awards ceremony, you flew into Lagos to ink a landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with your brother Governor of Lagos State. The MOU, Produce-For-Lagos Initiative, is a strategic long-term partnership agreement between Niger and Lagos states that guarantees Lagos as the off-taker of a range of agricultural produce from Niger State.
“All well-meaning Nigerlites are in support of your efforts, and the great expectation is that things can only get better for Niger State.”