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.