Agricultural expert and grain farming specialist, Dr. Ikem Mgbemena has advised core investors in Lake Rice, the Lagos and Kebbi State governments to put in motion a production chain that will maintain steady supply of the product.
The brand name of the rice is taken from the combination of first two alphabets in the name of the two states which is ‘La’ for Lagos State and ‘ke’ for Kebbi State.
Business Hilights recalls that the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the production of Lake Rice was signed between Governors Ambode and Bagudu in March 2016.
In an interview, Dr. Mgbemena told Business Hilights that Lake Rice is a ‘Child’ of ongoing campaign of the present government to diversify the economy using agriculture as an instrument.
“Like I said earlier, necessity is the mother of invention and both states have just demonstrated that within record time.
“What they need to do now is to start thinking of expansion and they can do this by bringing in other states that are blessed with rice farming land and boost availability to boosting harvest which will translate increase in output and domination of local rice market.
He argued that “If Lagos and Kebbi States government fail to work out a sustainable production format; the availability of the rice may start to drop and fade away.
In a similar development, former Lagos State governor and All Progressives Congress (APC) National leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, has described the partnership between Lagos and Kebbi states, which produced Lake Rice, as the beginning of the country’s economic recovery.
In the statement issued in Lagos by Tinubu Media Office, the former governor noted that the local production of Lake Rice by the two states is helping the country in meeting the rice requirement.
He commended Governors Akinwunmi Ambode and Atiku Bagudu for the partnership, saying the two were leading the way in the country’s rebirth and economic recovery.
Tinubu said, “Lake Rice has offered us a great example of what can be done through partnership between and among states. The successful partnership between Lagos and Kebbi states is commendable. They have responded to the growing demand for rice and have bridged local supply rather than engage in further importation. It is the beginning of the Nigeria’s renaissance.
“The purpose of the merger between the North and South-west, the significance of the partnership between Lagos in the South-west and Kebbi in the North-west has manifested in solving a real life problem. Indeed, the change the All Progressives Congress promised is manifesting,” Tinubu noted.
