Agribusiness
Empower more youths in Agrobusiness, Elliott tasks LASG
Hon. Desmond Elliott has counseled that the Lagos State government, through the Ministry of Agriculture should engender a better economic empowerment for youths with major focus on Small and Medium Scale Entreprise especially in agrobusiness as a way out.
He made emphasis on the need to fast track economic rebound, following the near collapse effect posed by COVID-19 pandemic and the aftermath of EndSars protest on people’s livelihoods.
Hon. Desmond Elliott, a member of the Lagos State House of Assembly, representing Surulere Constituency 1 gave the advice during the ongoing Surulere Farmfair scheduled to span 18th to 24th of December.
The Farmfair organized by Coalition of Youths in Collaboration with African Farmer is powered by the lawmaker, at the Teslim Balogun Stadium in Lagos.
Speaking during a visit to the farmfair Elliott said that the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund had a lot to do in 202, if the state government was really sincere towards improving and growing SMEs and Agriculture in the state.
“Above everything if there is any positive thing the EndSARS had taught us, it is that the state government should start redirecting their focus towards the growth of SMEs and also youth empowerment.
“Youth empowerment, not just education but also vocational skills should be emphasized. It means education should be in both formal and informal ones.
“This is because a lot of our youths are outside roaming about the streets and it is not that they do not want to work but there are no jobs out there.
“However, everybody wants to go into formal education, but the government can start training them in fishery, agriculture, fashion design just to mention
“We can’t do so much on large scale Agriculture for want of lands,but we can make almost every home that has a yard to grow a systemic Agricultural produce in their yards,” he said.
Elliott noted that the farmfair exhibition was a partnership between Surulere youth and himself.
The lawmaker said that Surulere youths had come together selflessly to meet farmers, marketers and manufacturers of farm products so that the farmfair could take place especially as the Yuletide period was drawing nearer.
He said that once the youth were given an enabling opportunity then they could achieve their best.
Elliott noted that when the exhibition started on Friday, it was amazing and that it was like a market and that he believed that as the Yuletide session draws nearer it will become more lively.
The lawmaker said that the farmfair was organised to provide relatively affordable farm produce for the people to buy.
“So Surulere youth had to go directly to the farmers and marketers instead of going through the middleman to bring them down here so they deserves an accolade for this wonderful initiative.
“They were able to get different farm organizations to come to the farmfair and we have for sale bags of rice in local and foreign brands, beans, snails, pepper, tomatoes, onions, livestock and more.
“It is the youths initiative and I bought into the idea because I believe it is a brilliant idea more so we are having empowerment programme in my Constituency for the youths.
“The empowerment programme which is an offshoot of what the EndSARS has taught us is that we should start laying emphasis on the needs of the youths and their plights,” he said.
The event also witnessed the conferment of an award of recognition on the lawmaker by a coalition of Igbo Community in the state.
The group, led by their President Chief Sunday Ude, said that Hon. Elliott has been a worthy ambassador of the people of Surulere and Lagos State in general.
Engineer Chuks Odumegwu, Secretary General of the Igbo Community in Lagos, said that they came to honour Hon. Desmond Elliott to let him know that they appreciated his service to the people of Surulere Constituency 1 and the people of Lagos State generally.
“We have come to say thank you for being there for the Igbos in Lagos State.
“We have the executive of the Igbos in Lagos State here and the local government coordinator of the state, as well as the Eze of Igbos in Lagos State.
“The President General of the community, Chief Sunday Ude came here himself to present the award to the lawmaker. He said he must come by himself, which is why we have come today,” he said.
In his speech, Chief Sunday Ude said that honour should be given to whom it is due and that they believed that Hon. Desmond Elliott deserved the honour.
“We came to present you a deserved honour because of your recognition for Igbo community in Lagos and humanity generally,” he said.
The lawmaker however, cited the level of tolerance exhibited by the Lagos State government as unprecedented, “this is not done elsewhere only in Lagos, he was a supervisor at the council level in time past, this shows how magnanimous we can be here in Lagos, I dedicate this award to all good people of Surulere Local Government.”