Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos says in the last five years, his administration has encouraged the Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs)through public private partnerships and support for entrepreneurs in the agric sector.
The governor said this at the Lagos Food Festival 2024 on Sunday at the Muri Okunola Park, Victoria Island.
The festival with the theme “A Taste of Culture” was organised by the Lagos State Ministry of Agriculture and Food Systems.
Sanwo-Olu said Lagos had succeeded in bringing out micro and small food vendors as well as stakeholders while creating opportunities and wealth for them to impact the society positively and improve the economy of the state.
“So, this is another, good government-private sector collaboration. And it’s another one of the things that make Lagos what it is. And so, we’re happy that all of you are able to come out here and showcase your food businesses.
“It’s about the small businesses that will use this as a platform for them to launch, you know, their products, their food skills and to be able to scale.
“That’s really what this is about. And we’re happy that year in, year out, the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Systems, they’ve kept up with this.
He reiterated the commitment of his administration to collaborate with the private sector to boost food value chain and ensure sufficiency.
“And this is the fifth, year we’re running it. Every year, you see the crowd is getting bigger and it’s getting better. Look at Ile-iyan he exhibited here few years ago, now he is an household name. This is how public-private partnership works
“You have seen me also display my very small cooking skills, where I did what is called a Eforiro-roll wrap, you know, with turkey and all.
“I’m extremely happy with them. And it’s getting really big because people actually do come here now, make a whole lot of presentations on themselves, you know, and make a whole lot of contact. And it blows on from there, you know,” he said.
Ms Abisola Olusanya the Commissioner for Agriculture and Food systems, said the Lagos state government is committed to using the food Festival to boost entertainment, tourism and culture.
” Our goal driven governor understands the importance of this , it’s like killing one bird with one stone, the tasting of different cuisine shows our cultural diversity.
” Also with the right infrastructure in place to ensuring food price reduction in the market while engaging students of tertiary institutions to be part of the food system,” the commissioner said.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the governor with the help of Mrs Tolani Oshikoya popularly known as Chef Tee made vegetable wraps.(NAN)
