By Olasunkanmi Akoni & Monsur Olowoopejo

LagosState Government in collaboration with some financial institutions have set aside the some of N3 billion to be distributed as loans to various agricultural cooperatives participating in the new agricultural estates initiatives of the state government.

The Permanent Secretary of the state Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, Dr. Yakub Basorun disclosed this on Wednesday at Alausa, Ikeja during the public presentation of agricultural estates and other initiatives being embarked upon by the ministry.

The five agricultural estates and initiatives being carried out by the state government in partnership with private sector includes: Vegetable Estate at Iyaafin in Badagry, poultry estate at Erikorodo in Ikorodu, Fish farming at Ketu_Ereyun, in Epe and arable crops estate at Agbowa.

Others are: Refrigerated Eko meat Van project and agricultural cooperatives’empowerment scheme.

The loan facility, according to Basorun was part of measures toward ensuring food security and safety for the over 18 million residents as well as providing job opportunities for teeming unemployed youths in the state.

He explained that the state government has concluded plans with some banks (names_withheld) to give loans to interested agricultural cooperative groups to be invested in the estate scheme and payable over a long period of specified time.

For the loans to be accessed, the permanent secretary, added that applicants would be screened and certified to be genuine before making recommendation to the bank for approval for the loan.

Basorun assured participants of government determination to provide the enabling environment to facilitate the participation of private sector in the agricultural estate initiatives.

He noted that the public expression of interest for all the estates and initiatives have been very impressive and surpassed the facilities available adding that government would take it as a challenge by expanding the facilities in years to come.

The state government planned to absorb 816 participants this year alone in the first scheme but over 2,500 have already applied to participate with some believing that the state government will allot land upon application.

Agriculture, as one of the cardinal programmes of Governor Babatunde Fashola Ten Point development Agenda, Basorun affirmed that the administration has kept faith with the promise by initiating projects and programmes in the agricultural sector that have led to the increase of over 1,000 percent in the sector’s capital expenditure within a space of four years which averaged over N1billion annually as well as attract private sector investment into the sector.

He noted that with the huge goals of food security and poverty alleviation for residents in the state, the administration was further poised to pay more emphasis to the sector in the coming years and collaborate more with the private sector towards attainment of the Millennium Development Goals, MDGs.

Basorun said: “The various efforts of government with the participation of the private sector are manifestation of the commitment of the administration towards the attainment of the Mega_City status for Lagos.

“I have confidence that all the stakeholders and beneficiaries of the various interventions will be faithful to the goal of attaining food security, job creation and economic development in the state.”

The public presentation, according to him was organised to educate the public especially those who have shown their interest on the objectives and gaps that the initiative would address as well as shed lights on deliverables from the government, the expectations from the private sector and the linkages that would be put in place for the success and sustainability of the programmes.