FG to increase funding for agricultural research
The federal government has said that it is adopting a new strategy for agricultural research and funding to improve its contribution to the Nigerian economy. The Executive Secretary/CEO of the National Agricultural Development Fund (NADF), Mohammed Abu Ibrahim, stated this in Abuja at the ‘Validation Exercise on the Report of the Baseline/Needs Assessment Survey of […]
The federal government has said that it is adopting a new strategy for agricultural research and funding to improve its contribution to the Nigerian economy.
The Executive Secretary/CEO of the National Agricultural Development Fund (NADF), Mohammed Abu Ibrahim, stated this in Abuja at the ‘Validation Exercise on the Report of the Baseline/Needs Assessment Survey of the 16 Agricultural Research Institutions and 17 Colleges of Agriculture in Nigeria.’
Alhaji Ibrahim said that the key findings from the survey “highlight critical areas that require urgent attention, including infrastructure, funding, curriculum enhancement, research support, technological integration, and industry linkages.”
“The National Agricultural Development Fund was established to address agricultural finance challenges and enhance the potential of Nigeria’s agriculture and food systems, with the goal of promoting sustainable development and food security.
“In line with this mandate, we conducted a comprehensive baseline and needs assessment survey to evaluate the state of our agricultural research institutes and colleges. This effort, supported by the Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria (ARCN), has provided invaluable insights into the strengths, gaps, and opportunities within our agricultural research and training ecosystem.
“Research is not just a foundation for success; it is the cradle of national development. No nation has ever achieved greatness without investing in knowledge, discovery, and innovation. The most advanced economies in the world did not rise by chance; they rose because they dared to explore, to innovate, and to embrace research as the engine of their growth,” the executive secretary stated.
In his speech, the Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Security, Dr. Aliyu Abdullahi Sabi said Nigeria has taken a significant step towards reviving research institutes and agricultural schools nationwide by closing a four-decade gap in the assessment of its agricultural research system.
“The last time any system-wide assessment or evaluation of the National Agricultural Research System was conducted was as a prelude to President Shehu Shagari’s Green Revolution. Since then, no government has deemed it necessary to take a peek into the research institute system with a view to transforming them until this very government of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu,” he stated.
Prof. Garba Sharubutu, Executive Secretary of the Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria, in his remarks referred to the evaluation as a “rebirth of the agricultural research system in this country.”
“Before Tinubu’s administration, for over 25 years, no thought, no thinking, and no attempt was made to touch on the substance of the agricultural research system,” he said.
Executive Director of the Nigerian Stored Products Research Institute and also the Chairman of Committee of Directors of Research Institutes, Professor Lateef Sanni noted that “the ability of our research institutes to generate and transfer innovative technologies for use by stakeholders across the agricultural value chain is critical to achieving food security, agro-industrialisation, and poverty alleviation.”