Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has reaffirmed his administration’s commitment towards encouraging more innovative individuals and groups that would scale up the food security systems of the state.
Governor Sanwo-Olu gave this assurance at the 2025 Lagos Food Festival held at the Muri Okunola Park, Victoria Island, with the theme: “Taste Without Borders ”
The Governor said that in the last eleven months, the government, through the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Systems, has been involved in numerous interventions and empowerment initiatives which have positively impacted Agripreneurs and the entire value chains.
“The Ministry of Agriculture and Food Systems have done so much this year; they have empowered a lot of entrepreneurs, and this is in a bid to continue to put innovators and aggregators in the food business to allow them to be independent and to do well as entrepreneurs.
“And families are also here to enjoy and see the exhibition of various food cultures and cuisine, and you can see that the whole place is filled up I myself have also been put to a quick food chef. I actually cooked, I was turned to Chef Jide, this is where I cooked a seafood rice, with spinach, and I tasted my own cooking as well.
“But it is a whole idea of families coming out, encouraging people in the catering, food space, and for us to be able to use food to tell the Lagos story.
“So it is really for people to see, understand and appreciate that we are people, that is very fashionista in all areas. Food is one way in which you can show your arts, your skills, and we are doing it on a budget and opening opportunities for a lot of young talents, we are opening up the smart people, and businesses are being transformed,” he said
Governor Sanwo-Olu added that the government must design programmes that will uplift citizens and encourage different skills, stressing that his government would continue to do the right thing to sustain the food security so that the state will remain a safe home for all.
In her remarks, the Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Systems, Ms Abisola Olusanya, stressed that the festival, the fifth in its series, is an embodiment of what Lagos stands for, particularly in the area of culinary culture fused with entertainment.
Olusanya also mentioned that the festival has allowed food actors in the state to get connected, network as well and expand their businesses to grow beyond borders.
She said “Lagos is very diverse, it is very multicultural and so we believe that in celebrating everything that is Lagos, food is the embodiment of that and we as the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Systems, we are the curators and the custodians of that, so it is best that we celebrate all of our value food chain actors and the Lagos Food Festival is a place to do so.
“We have had many stars made from the Lagos Food Festival just by reason of Mr Governor cooking along with them and tasting their foods and giving a word of encouragement. So, this is an avenue for us as the ministry of agriculture and food systems to solidify all of our interventions over the years and to celebrate everyone that makes it possible for all of us to eat in Lagos.”
She added that given the multicultural nature of Lagos, the government believes in celebrating everything that is Lagos, the value, as well as the food chain actors.
Some of the participants, particularly food vendors at the festival, appreciated the state government’s continuous and all-year-round the year interventions to ensure the growth of the food actors in the state.
