Farmers in Lagos State have said improved access to land, finance, equipment and transportation can help double local food production.

The farmers said Lagos could achieve its target of increasing its contribution to food consumed locally from 25 per cent to 50 per cent.

The Chairperson of the Ojo Farmers Community, Mayriam Ali, said this in an interview on Sunday in Lagos.

Ms Ali said farmers in Ojo were already producing vegetables in significant quantities, despite limited resources and other challenges.

“Lagos has enough. I am very sure that we have enough.

“The vegetables that are coming out from Ojo Local Government, 75 per cent of it is going outside the country,” she said.

She said farmers around the Lagos State University and military barracks areas were producing vegetables that could contribute more to local food supply.

According to her, vegetables were among the agricultural products Lagos could produce in large quantities for local consumption and export.

Ms Ali said access to land, finance, machinery, irrigation and transportation remained critical to expanding agricultural production across the state.

She said the short production cycle of some vegetables made it possible for farmers to increase output within a relatively short period.

“Our vegetable is for three weeks. When you plant now, in three weeks, you are ready to harvest.

“So, it is achievable if government comes to the field and looks at the problems we have,” she said.

Ms Ali urged government officials responsible for agricultural programmes to visit farms regularly and identify the specific challenges facing farmers.

She said regular visits would enable government to provide support based on actual conditions rather than relying only on general agricultural programmes.

The chairperson also called for support that would enable farmers to repay assistance received, rather than depending solely on grants.

She suggested that the government could provide equipment or finance for specific farm projects and monitor how the support is used.

Ms Ali identified transportation as another major challenge that could limit the benefits of increased agricultural production.

She said farmers sometimes had produce ready for sale but struggled to move it from farms to markets because of high transportation costs.

She said better arrangements for moving agricultural produce to airports and other markets could also create more opportunities for farmers.

Ms Ali said such arrangements would ease pressure on farmers while encouraging those interested in exporting agricultural produce.

She said stronger collaboration between government and farmers could help Lagos increase local food production and reduce dependence on food brought from other states.

Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu had said more than 70 per cent of food consumed in Lagos was produced outside the state.

Mr Sanwo-Olu said this on August 12 at the commissioning of the Mid-Level Agro-Produce Hub in Pen Cinema, Agege.

He said the state was targeting increased food production in Lagos to enable local farmers to supply a larger share of the food residents consume.

(NAN)