Lagos Commodity Exchange’ll Boost Agribusiness’

The proposed Lagos Commodity Exchange (LCE) will foster competitiveness and resilience with the state huge potential to advance economic growth, sustainable value chains and global food security, a former Chairman, Export Group, Lagos Chamber of Commerce & Industry (LCCI), Dr. Obiora Madu, has said.
Madu, medium sized who is the Director-General of African Centre for Supply Chain (ACSC), said the presence of a commodity would in medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to larger, export-oriented companies to create value chains that are more competitive and more sustainable.
In addition, he said the project would have a concrete impact along the value chain, from farmers to producers to food retailers, making businesses more competitive as well as expand opportunities for trade and boost exports.
To facilitate this work, he urged the government to establish a dedicated advisory team to provide financial and technical support, with the overall aim of scaling up private sector participation and making food production more efficient and sustainable using the exchange.
Lagos is counting on the initiative to boost farmers’ earnings and facilitate market exchange.
Speaking in Lagos, the Special Adviser, Food Security, Mr. Ganiyu Sanni, said though the state deserves a full-fledged commodities market. He said setting up a commodities exchange requires setting up key institutions for technical and financial support to the traders to widely expand the delivery of benefits. The exchange, according to him, will make the economy more inclusive, boosting the links between agriculture and finance and making the commodity sector more efficient and competitive.
Sanni said the government is working to formalize the structures and was upbeat that Lagos will become the first state in Africa to establish a structured commodity market.
He said the government was committed to working with the private sector to facilitate food security by harnessing public and private investment to create a strong, mixed sector economy that could provide jobs for all and create the base for expanding social services and environmental sustainability.
“Agriculture has the highest demonstrated potential for job and wealth creation and it is against this background that the agricultural sector should be one of the key instruments of achieving this laudable dream,” he said.
Okanlawon noted that the government would develop the coconut value; a strategic initiative to develop an expanded structure for coconut production and processing in the State through PPP arrangement as a means of generating employment, wealth creation and food security.
Sanni, who reiterated that the government was passionate about the issues of food security and investment in the agriculture sector, said the government would give incentives such tax relief and ensure a conducive business environment for prospective investors in the agriculture sector.

Source: The Nation