BATN Foundation, Lagos Expand Partnership Into Poultry Farming
The BATN Foundation and the Lagos State Government are widening their agricultural partnership with the launch of a new poultry development programme designed to equip farmers with practical skills, improve production and create more sustainable businesses.
Known as “Chicks to Plate,” the initiative is being implemented with the Lagos State Agricultural Development Authority (LSADA) and will train 200 existing and aspiring poultry farmers in modern production methods, farm management, biosecurity and agribusiness.
As part of the programme, 40 layer farmers will receive additional enterprise support to strengthen their operations and improve their ability to scale.
The poultry initiative builds on the foundation’s partnership with Lagos State, which dates back to 2018 when both parties launched the “Fingerlings to Fork” programme to support fish farmers.
Over the years, the aquaculture project trained 1,436 fish farmers in areas ranging from modern production and processing to packaging, farm management and export readiness. Some beneficiaries also received equipment, including fish-smoking kilns and tarpaulin ponds.
The expansion into poultry comes as Lagos intensifies efforts to increase local food production and strengthen agricultural value chains. The state estimates that local production currently meets about 25 per cent of its food demand, with an ambition to increase that contribution to 50 per cent.
Lagos Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Systems, Abisola Olusanya, represented by the Director of Agribusiness, Aramide Gansallo, said the poultry sector offers opportunities to improve access to animal protein while generating jobs and expanding income opportunities.
The ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Emmanuel Audu, described the new initiative as a logical extension of the fish farming programme, saying experience gained from the earlier partnership had created a strong platform for expanding into another critical agricultural subsector.
BATN Foundation Executive Director, Oludare Odusanya, emphasised that effective agricultural intervention must go beyond theoretical training. According to him, farmers need practical knowledge, productive assets and access to opportunities that can help transform farming into viable enterprises.
Through the Chicks to Plate programme, participants will receive training designed to improve productivity and strengthen their ability to manage common challenges in poultry production, including disease prevention and farm management.
The programme also fits into BATN Foundation’s broader agricultural development agenda, which focuses on helping smallholder farmers increase productivity, build sustainable businesses and improve their livelihoods. The foundation says it has reached more than 300,000 smallholder farmers across Nigeria since its establishment in 2002.
For Lagos, the latest intervention comes against the backdrop of rising pressure to strengthen food security in a state that relies heavily on supplies from other parts of the country.
By expanding its partnership with BATN Foundation into poultry, the state hopes to build stronger local production capacity while creating new opportunities for farmers across the poultry value chain—from production to processing and distribution.
