The Commissioner for Agriculture, Ms. Bisola Olusanya has said that the Lagos State Government remains committed as ever to the growth and development of the coconut value chain across the State.
The Commissioner stated this when the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) team, made up of Mr. Dominique Koffy Kouacou, FAO Representative (Ad Interim) in Nigeria and ECOWAS; Abubakar Suleiman, Assistant FAO Representative (Programme) and Adeola Akinrinlola, FAO Project focal officer, paid a courtesy visit to the Ministry as part of their mission to Lagos State.
During the visit, while FAO renewed its commitment to partner with LASG for the implementation of a five-year Coconut Value Chain Upgrade Strategy in the State, Olusanya assured the team of the commitment of the state government to pay her counterpart fund contribution to the project as and when due. She noted that Mr. Governor has approved the release of funds for the implementation of year one of the project with the assurance that provision has been made for subsequent years of the project.
The FAO Team, along with the officials of Lagos State Coconut Development Authority (LASCODA), led by the General Manager, Mr. Dapo Olakulehin, later visited some coconut processors in the Ikeja environs. The FAO Representative, Mr. Dominique Koffy Kouacou interacted with the processors and was impressed with their level of activities.
After the field visit, the FAO team said that with what they saw regarding the expectations of the stakeholders, the implementation of the five-year coconut upgrade strategy will commence immediately in Lagos State.
The General Manager.
Lagos State Coconut Development Authority, Mr. Dapo Olakulehin expressed his appreciation to the FAO team for their willingness to commence the implementation of the strategy and promised that LASCODA, and by extension, LASG, will fully cooperate towards the achievement of the set goals.