The Delta State House of Assembly has dropped the proposed bill to establish the Delta State Food Security Agency, declaring that its provisions would duplicate existing functions already handled by the State Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources.
The decision was reached during plenary on Tuesday, October 28, 2025, following the adoption of the report of the Joint Committee on Agriculture and Natural Resources and the Special Committee on Nutrition and Food Security.
Presenting the report, Chairman of the Committee on Agriculture and Natural Resources and Chief Whip of the House, Hon. Perkins Umukoro, explained that after an extensive review and wide-ranging consultations with relevant stakeholders, the committees concluded that the bill was unnecessary and redundant.
According to Umukoro, the State Ministry of Agriculture already has a well-structured framework and policies in place to ensure food security, enhance nutrition, and promote agricultural sustainability across Delta communities. He emphasized that setting up a new agency would not only duplicate existing efforts but also place additional strain on government resources.
“The Ministry of Agriculture currently oversees food security programs and interventions. Creating another agency would only lead to bureaucratic overlap and waste of public funds,” Umukoro stated while submitting the committee’s findings to the House.
Following his presentation, lawmakers unanimously voted in support of the committee’s recommendations. Consequently, Speaker Rt. Hon. Emomotimi Guwor directed that the Delta State Food Security Agency Bill, 2024, be withdrawn and struck out from further legislative proceedings.
The proposed bill, introduced earlier in February 2025, had sought to institutionalize state-wide mechanisms for tackling food insecurity and promoting sustainable agricultural development. However, the Assembly’s latest decision underscores its commitment to efficient governance, resource optimization, and the avoidance of overlapping administrative structures within Delta State’s public sector.
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