Food Security: Lagos senator extols Tinubu’s strides in agric, empowers over 300 famers

By Ezurike Ugochukwu

The senator representing Lagos East in the senate, Senator Tokunbo Abiru has praised the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s bold reforms in agriculture.

Tinubu and Abiru

The ex banker turn politician expressed profound gratitude to the president for his far-reaching, bold reforms in agriculture, which was geared at ensuring national food production and security.

To this end, Senator Abiru in partnership with National Agricultural Land Development Authority (NALDA) has designed an empowerment programme for 300 farmers to ensure food security across Lagos East senatorial district.
The Ikorodu-born Federal Lawmaker flagged off the empowerment scheme which include fertilisers, seedlings and herbicides last Thursday 23rd May 2024 at his Lagos road – Ebute Constituency office.

Paul Ikonne, CEO NALDA

Representative of Senator Abiru at the event Mr. Enitan Olukotun, in a chart with Nation Update stated that the empowerment is one in the series of agric-focused direct interventions targeted at livestock and crop farmers in mainly agricultural communities of Ikorodu, Epe, and Ibeju-Lekki Local Government Areas, under the Lagos East Senatorial District.
He called to memory the sponsorship of last November, 2023 by the senator where over 100 livestock farmers received fully vaccinated Chickens, feeds and cages to scale up their poultry business, after receiving training from experts on how to nurture their birds, reduce mortality and make it big in the poultry business.

Olukokun stated, “In June 2022, in Epe Local Government, Senator Abiru provided hand planters and grants to over 200 rural farmers and also empowered over 1,250 market women.

“In 2023, 250 farmers also received MPK fertilisers facilitated by the Senator. In the same vein, over 700 Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) owners benefitted from the SMEDAN MSMEs Grants and empowerment he facilitated.”

Olukokun

Olukokun won’t further to say that Senator Abiru had impacted the people of Lagos East in various remarkable ways with such impressive scorecard in the areas of agric, support for MSMEs, facilitation of construction of schools, mini-stadia, markets, electricity transformers, road construction and rehabilitation, water projects across the entire Senatorial district and the establishment of the one of its kind Innovation labs in the country, the SAIL Innovation Lab.
In his remarks, the Chief Executive Officer/ Executive Secretary, Prince Paul Ikonne, represented by the agency’s Information Communications Technology, ICT Director, Mr. Chima Onuha said the partnership with Senator Abiru is in accordance with the Renewed Hope Agenda of the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on agriculture development and food security, advising the beneficiaries to make judicious use of the farm inputs as their individual roles are key to national building.

Prominent stakeholders in the agric sectors and political leaders who extolled Senator Abiru’s efforts at ensuring food security include Dr. Hakeem Adetugbobo, Apostle Victor Odunsi, Alhaji Rilwan Ishola Jinadu, Alhaja Sheifat Abiodun Ogunniyi, Alhaji Sulaimon Musiliu Adewale (Ola-four), South West Chairman, All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Otunba (Dr.) Femi Oke, among others.