Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State says food security will continue to receive priority attention to reduce the cost of food commodities in the state.

Mr Sanwo-Olu gave the assurance during the 2023 Lagos Food Festival at the Muri Okunola Park, Victoria Island, on Sunday in Lagos.

The governor was represented by his deputy, Dr Obafemi Hamzat.

The theme for the 2023 festival was: “A Fusion of Flavours.”

He said his administration would continue to be passionate about boosting the agricultural sector.

Mr Sanwo-Olu said the sector had witnessed several initiatives and featured prominently in the THEMES Agenda of the state.

He expressed satisfaction with the massive turnout at the event, adding that it demonstrated the true spirit of Lagos.

The governor said the Lagos Food Festival showcase prosperity, ingenuity, innovation and the spirit of Lagos to young people.

According to him, the food festival provides a platform for small and medium enterprises in the agriculture and food sector to showcase the beauty of the state as well as network.

“The event is about young people mostly showing their talents and making money, so we cannot be a society just sitting and complaining.

“We can see all these young people here today, they are doing various things, so they are looking inward to say how can we add value and be successful.

“That is what I see here, prosperity, ingenuity, innovation and the spirit of Lagos,” he said.

The food festival featured music, entertainment, cooking competition and dance.

Former World Guinness Record holder chef Hilda Baci was among the judges during the cooking competition.

Also, live performances by Tuface Idibia, Adewale Ayuba, Laffup and Chef Gibbs, among others, added excitement to the event.

The park, which was filled to capacity, had people trooping in with their families and loved ones to have fun and relax during yuletide.

Also speaking, Abisola Olusanya, the state commissioner for agriculture, described 2023 as a very challenging period for the agricultural sector and the farmers.

Mr Olusanya said the 2023 general elections, subsidy removal and the naira redesign policy of the federal government had a lot of negative effects on the performance of the sector.

A fish farmer, Falilat Oladimeji, a member of Eja Lonibu fishermen and women, Liverpool, Apapa area of the state, lauded the state government for providing such a platform for farmers and SMEs.

Ms Oladimeji urged the state government to support fish farmers with boats and engines, fish dryers, fishing nets, freezers and cold rooms to boost productivity.

“This is my sixth time attending this event, and I am happy.

I am happy with the sales, it is better than last year and we also enjoyed ourselves.

“The ministry gave us free stand and opportunity and we want to appreciate them for what they have done for us.

“Fish is very expensive now because all the materials used for fishing are expensive. That is why we want the government to support us,” she said.

(NAN)