The Lagos State Government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a Chinese food processing company, Yihai Kerry Arawana Holdings Company Limited, to increase productivity in the rice value chain and enhance food security in the state.
Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who is currently in China with some Lagos State Government officials for the ongoing Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), witnessed the signing of the MoU on Wednesday, September 4, 2024.
The Special Adviser to Governor Sanwo-Olu on Agriculture (Rice Mill Initiative), Dr. Oluwarotimi Fashola, signed the MoU on behalf of the Lagos State Government, while Group Director, Rice Industry Division, Yihai Kerry Arawana Holdings Company Limited, Wang Wei, signed on behalf of the Chinese company.
He said the signing of the MoU and collaboration between the Lagos State Government and the Chinese company will enhance rice production and agricultural productivity in Lagos State in line with the Babajide Sanwo-Olu administration’s quest for food security and agricultural revolution.
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He said: “We realise that we have the capacity to feed ourselves as a people if we put the right investment in agriculture. That is why our administration has prioritised agricultural value chains. Our rice initiative, with the Imota Rice Mill, is projected to provide 1,500 direct jobs and over 250,000 indirect jobs. The rice mill alone has a capacity to produce 2.8 million bags of 50 kg bags of rice yearly.”
The Lagos State Government, in a statement on Thursday, reiterated its commitment to enhancing agricultural productivity, saying it has been actively engaged in the promotion of cultivation of rice to meet the high demand for rice consumption in the state.
Yihai Kerry Arawana Holdings Company Limited is one of the largest food processing companies in China, which operates an integrated rice business covering the rice value chain, from cultivation to processing and distribution of milled rice.
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