Lagos State Govt Compensates Nine Traditional Land Owning Families in Epe with 37.5million naira.

The Lagos State Ministry of Agriculture has presented N37.5million as crops compensation to traditional land owning families of igbodu village, Epe.

Beneficiary families are Seelu family, Luparo family, Apena Asumoru Oliwo Ogunseye family, Odele family, Elias Ogunlaja families, the George Ilori families, Oluwose families, Bakare Ogunfowora families and Omo Erelu families.

The cheques for the compensation were handed over to beneficiaries during an event organized by the Lagos State Agricultural Land Holdings Authority on Tuesday at Johnson Agiri, Agricultural Complex, Oko Oba, Agege.

The State Commissioner for Agriculture, Ms Abisola Olusanya said that the acquisition of land was not just for the monetary value but also to create of jobs and make Lagos State a food production hub, a catalyst and purveyor of modern agricultural system with a dynamic structure that promotes favorable farming in order to reduce poverty in line with promoting sustainable development goals of 2030.

She further said that the facilitation of this noble and laudable scheme would also help in preventing encroachment by land speculators and increase the morale of beneficiaries farmers leading to boost in food production.

Ms. Olusanya explained that the compensation Programme would bring synergy between traditional land owners and the State Government which would provide peaceful co-existence with the famers and residents while agriculture development would enriched the State.

The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Mrs Olatokunbo Emokpae, said that the State Government established the Agricultural Land Holdings Authority, ALHA, an Agency under the purview of the Ministry of Agriculture, saddled with the responsibility of managing and administering land designated Agricultural Land in the State in order to maximize the limited land available in Lagos state for agricultural production to feed over 21 million residents in the state, and effectively manage the available lands for food sufficiency.

Mrs Emokpae revealed that the Agric land holdings authority officers had painstakingly worked to capture the rightful owners of the land and had properly enumerated the crops on the land to ensure that all stakeholders are fairly compensated.

“This event is a demonstration of the good will and commitment of the present administration under the leadership of Mr Babajide Olusola Sanwo-olu as one of the THEMEs agenda to good governance and equity among her citizens.

The General Manager, Lagos State Agriculture Land Holdings Authority, Mr Oladapo Are, said that State Government had in two years, paid land owners over 70 million, (37.5 million 2022 and 38million in 2021).