The Lagos Commodities and Futures Exchange (LCFE) has called on the Federal Government to leverage the commodities exchange ecosystem to bolster food security, generate employment opportunities, and bolster Nigeria’s foreign exchange reserves.
Mr. Akin Akeredolu-Ale, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of LCFE who made the call in Lagos at a forum emphasized that involving commodities exchanges in the process could lead to greater outcomes of curbing the food crisis.
Akeredolu-Ale highlighted the potential benefits of integrating commodities exchanges into government strategies, citing their ability to streamline agricultural supply chains, facilitate fair pricing mechanisms, and attract investments.
By harnessing the commodities exchange ecosystem, he believes Nigeria can significantly enhance its capacity to address food security concerns while simultaneously boosting economic growth and foreign exchange earnings.
Akeredolu-Ale noted that the Nigerian economy is experiencing a food crisis with fast-rising food costs, cost of transportation, insecurity, poor infrastructure, and foreign exchange instability.
According to him, all these have affected the ability of commodity stakeholders to successfully produce food and transport it to where it’s needed.
Akeredolu-Ale noted that Lagos Commodities and Futures Exchange since receiving its license in 2019. has propagated the need for the investing community to focus on the Commodities Ecosystem as not only the next gold mine but also a route to driving the GDP of the economy from single digits to double digits.
He noted that since the listing of physical Gold coins called “Eko Gold Coins” in 2022, the Exchange has traded over N66 million worth of Gold through registered Commodity brokers on its Exchange.
Akeredolu-Ale commended the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for its supportive roles in approving trading on various asset classes on LCFE.