THE Lagos State Government has set aside N200m for the Lagos Agrithon 3.0 initiative, to scale up youth-led agribusinesses and agritech innovations to transform the state’s food systems, from farm to fork.

Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who announced this on Friday, at an event to commemorate the 2026 World Food Day at Ikeja, called on all stakeholders to renew their commitment to a common purpose: a Lagos where food is not just available but accessible, safe, nutritious and affordable, and where agriculture creates prosperity; and whose food systems are strong enough for tomorrow’s challenges. Together, let us innovate today, so we can nourish tomorrow.

Represented by his deputy, Dr Kadri Obafemi Hamzat, Sanwo-Olu, said the measure of the successes recorded by the state, is not the number of programmes launched or facilities built, but the lasting improvement in people’s lives.

He said: “Five priorities must guide us. Firstly, accelerate innovation and the adoption of appropriate technology. Secondly, deepen partnerships with food-producing states, investors, development partners and research institutions. Lagos cannot achieve food security alone.

“Thirdly, invest in the people who drive our food economy, with access to skills, finance, technology and markets. Fourthly, reduce post-harvest losses through better storage, processing, logistics and market coordination. And fifth, pursue affordability, nutrition and sustainability together.”

The governor noted that this year’s World Food Day with the theme: “Innovate Today, Nourish Tomorrow,” highlights the need for new ideas and practical solutions to address hunger and malnutrition.

He said the day also calls for sustained commitment and decisive action to ensure that everyone has access to adequate, nutritious food. “Achieving this requires innovation that goes beyond ideas and research to produce practical results. It must reach the farm, the processing centre, the marketplace, and the kitchen of every household.

“Since taking office, we have pursued a food system that is resilient, inclusive and sustainable. Our Five-Year Agricultural and Food Systems Roadmap targets an increase in food self-sufficiency from about 20 per cent to 40 per cent of our food demand.”

Earlier in her welcome address, the Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Systems, Abisola Olusanya, said the past seven and a half years ago, the state began rethinking what agriculture should mean in a city like Lagos. “We even changed the name of our Ministry to Agriculture and Food Systems, because we had come to understand that growing food was only one part of the much larger business of feeding people, and created three new departments – livestock, Produce safety quality assurance and Agric mechanization and engineering.

“That systems thinking have taken us in quite a few directions. From establishing agricultural laboratories in over 40 schools and training more than 100,000 people through APPEALS, Lagos CARES, FADAMA, LAP, LASP, NPFS and the Butchers Academy, to completing and operationalising the Lagos Rice Mill, developing the Central Food Logistics Hub, our middle-level markets and last-mile meat distribution points.

“We ventured into dairy and cattle feedlot development, and today, fresh Lagos-produced milk has become part of our daily routine in Alausa, with our schools next in line. Our Lagos Aquaculture Centre of Excellence for fisheries offtake and processing is taking shape, while the Lagos Agrinnovation Club and Agrithon continue to open up opportunities for young innovators….”

She added that much of the initiatives remain work in progress, adding that some projects are already serving people, others are taking shape, and several will require continued investment and commitment, but the great news is that the next administration is a part of this already.