Nigeria has made a significant breakthrough in agricultural research by conducting its first comprehensive evaluation of research institutes and colleges of agriculture in over four decades.
Speaking at the report validation session of the NADF Baseline Survey and Needs Assessment in Abuja, the Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Security, Aliyu Abdullahi, emphasized the importance of the initiative.
“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,” Abdullahi stated.
He commended NADF for leading the project and called for improved research and training infrastructure, adding, “Agricultural research is the engine of growth of the agricultural sector.”
NADF’s Executive Secretary, Mohammed Ibrahim, explained that the assessment covered 16 agricultural research institutes and 17 colleges of agriculture.
“What we have done is that around September last year, we constituted a consultancy team to do a baseline survey and a needs assessment so that we will be able to know their strengths, their constraints, their gaps, their challenges, and of course, their opportunities,” Ibrahim stated.
Describing the state of these institutes as “very, very deplorable,” Ibrahim attributed the challenges to years of neglect. “There is a lot that needs to be done. These institutes and colleges of agriculture have been neglected for years and years,” he added.
Despite the grim findings, Ibrahim expressed optimism about renewed government commitment. “We are now here, thanks to the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. We want to have a very tailored approach.”
The Executive Secretary of the Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria, Prof. Garba Sharubutu, referred to the assessment as a “rebirth of the agricultural research system in this country.”
He noted, “Before Tinubu’s administration, for over 25 years, no thought, no thinking, no attempt was made to touch on the substance of the agricultural research system.”
Highlighting the importance of research in addressing Nigeria’s food security challenges, the Executive Director of the Nigerian Stored Products Research Institute, Lateef Sanni, stressed the initiative’s significance.
“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-industrialization, and poverty alleviation,” he said.
He warned that without adequate investment in research, innovation, and development, agricultural progress would remain limited.
Findings from the needs assessment revealed an urgent need for increased funding and infrastructure upgrades.
“The newest tools and equipment in our research institutes were procured decades ago and are now obsolete. However, under the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, funding to these institutions has increased, though the budgetary provision remains inadequate to address the infrastructure deficit,” Abdullahi noted.
To further improve research infrastructure, NADF has initiated partnerships with various stakeholders.
“We have already signed an MOU with one of Africa’s largest renewable power companies to provide constant power to these institutes. We are also in discussions with an internet service provider to ensure that these institutions have reliable connectivity,” Ibrahim disclosed.
The move marks a decisive step towards revamping Nigeria’s agricultural research landscape and equipping institutions with the necessary tools to drive national food security.
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