Food Security: Lagos State Resilience Office Holds Workshop For Stakeholders

The Lagos State Resilience Office (LASRO), in collaboration with Anderson Nigeria, has organised a workshop for stakeholders from various sectors on food insecurity as a threat to human existence.

In his address at the Workshop held at The Colossus, Ikeja, Lagos, Dr. Folayinka Dania, the Lagos State Chief Resilience Officer, said the Lagos Resilience Intelligence System (LRIS) is a critical tool in our efforts to enhance the State’s resilience to potential risks. This workshop is an important step in ensuring that the system is informed by the expertise and experiences of our stakeholders.

Dr. Dania, represented by Mr. Olufemi Dada, an Assitant Director in the Agency, stated that the aim of the workshop is to primarily identify the factors that can affect food security in the State and how an early warning system can be put in place to ensure food is consistently available and accessible to Lagosians.

Mr. Basit Baruwa, a representative of the Ministry of Economic Planning and Budget, while responding to issues around land unavailability for farming in the State, informed that Lagos has leveraged a large expanse of arable lands in other Nigerian States for agricultural purposes.

The Project Team Lead of Anderson Nigeria, Mr. Lateef Surakatu, noted that the functions of resilience managers in a system involve identifying risks, root causes, and impacts and making plans to mitigate such risks.

Professor Olatunji Abanikanda, Dean, Department of Agriculture, Lagos State University, appreciated the conversation around addressing food insecurity and engaging the School of Agriculture as a body corporate for inputs.

Prof. Abanikanda further noted that Anderson Nigeria had been a respectable body, and that has been reflected in the contents of the conversation.

Ms. Deola Durodola, Executive Director of United Way Greater Nigeria, an NGO, said, “Food security is a very important conversation and if we can address the issues, understand the population and how to accurately provide and cater for them, we would establish a system that can effectively tackle food insecurity”.

“We have the right people participating and contributing. The conversation has opened up opportunities for productive partnerships. A lot of opportunities Lagos State is already providing for and now known for out there”, she added,

The workshop aims to validate information regarding early warning signs of risk to food security, adequacy of proposed thresholds, and access to information relevant to assessing risk indicators.

The Lagos Resilience Intelligence System is designed to provide real-time data and insights to support informed decision-making and enhance the State’s resilience to potential risks. The system focuses on monitoring and analyzing key indicators related to food security, including availability, access, utilization, and stability.

The workshop, which had in attendance government agencies, private sector organizations, academia, non-governmental organisations and civil society groups, was very engaging with participants exploring the opportunity to share their expertise, provide feedback, and validate the information and thresholds proposed for the LRIS.