SATURDAY- 25th September, 2021: Several Members of the House Committee on Agriculture on Thursday, 16th September 2021, paid an oversight visit to the Institution of Agricultural Research and Training (IAR & T), at the Moor Plantation in Ibadan, the Oyo State Capital.
The team led by the House Committee Chairman, Hon Munir Babba Dan Agundi, visited the agency as a part of the committee’s efforts to oversee the financial activities of Agric based government agencies in Oyo state.
The House Committee Chairman during his speech at the event stated that all agencies who have fallen behind in performance, with no evidence of improvement would be subjected to target in the coming budget.
He added that it was necessary for the agencies to work in line with their mandate as given to them by the constitution, in order to receive value for the money invested in the agencies.
Speaking further, the chairman opined that although Nigeria has started research systems like some countries like India, Brazil, more work needed to be done to attain the same research level as these countries in agriculture. He stated that moving forward everything has to be done with the proper guidelines that would give positive output in ongoing researching, saying that the committee has equipped itself with learned individuals in the field of agriculture.
The Executive Director of IAR &T, Prof Veronica Obatolu, while speaking about some of the achievement of the institution said that although many of the research project embarked upon by the organization were very capital intensive, the agency had been able to develop a technology which replaces Siza Fiber with Kenaf Fiber which the agency produces in the production of Plaster of Paris (POP).
She further mentioned the agency’s progress with mapping of the agro-ecological zones across the country by the agency. She also added that the agency had been to add value to some products and their by-products. Technologies had also been developed by the agency to make the task of peeling cassava, and the husking of maize easier on the farmers.
She further explained that the agency had also developed varieties of Maize and Kenaf seeds adaptable to the south ecological zones. She went on to reveal that the agency was putting plans in place to release varieties of Kenaf and Cowpea at the end of the year that will be adaptable to all the agro-ecological zones of the country
Further addressing the house committee, Obatolu announced that although the agency made adequate use of the funds released to them, majority of the funds were released late to the agency.
While addressing some of the reservations raised by some members of the House committee about the IAR &T, she said that one of the ways the agency generated revenue was by selling foundation seeds developed by the agency to companies in need of them.
Speaking on some of the mandate of the organization, Mrs. Veronica added that IAR & T also worked in collaboration with NIHORT amongst others for the development for tomato fertilizers. She also spoke about their other mandates which includes research for soil and water management, and the genetic improvement of Kenaf.
The chairman of the house committee in a closing remark advised the agency to move round the country more during its soil and water management research and not just in some selected zone in order to fulfil the dictates of the organization’s mandate and fully represent the aspiration of the whole country.
In an exclusive interview with CEOAFRICA, the house committee chairman reiterated that the house committee’s visit was necessary as it was the committee’s constitutional responsibility to oversee activities of government agencies.
He added that He and the rest of the house committee will be paying oversight visits to NIHORT, Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria (CRIN), Federal College of Animal Science amongst others during their stay in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital to assess the level of project development from 2019 till date, and to ensure there was a level of compliance to the budget compliance act in terms of project execution, and how well these agencies were complying as regard the level of progress they have made in terms of the mandates given to them
Speaking on the assessment of their first oversight visit to IAR & T, the chairman commended the agency and also advised them not to relent in fulfilling the dictates of their mandates.
Another member of the committee, Mr. Odebunmi Segun while speaking to newsmen added that the agency should make conscious efforts to be more proactive in ensuring that the communication chain between them and the grassroots farmers is not broken. He advised them to ensure that the results of their researches gets to the grassroots farmers who would benefit from these researches.
He went further to say that more funds should be allotted to the agency’s budget, as the current budget is incapable of covering the cost of future researches and projects.
In his words, “The total budget for these institutions is not enough to cover the mandate given to them by the constitution.” “Nigeria needs to invest more in research so the future generation would be able to benefit from these researches”.
Another member of the committee, while speaking in an interview with CEOAFRICA, commended the research institute on its ability to do well despite limited resources given to them, assuring them of the government’s willingness to do more.
He said, “We’ll be willing to help them but they have to do more for Nigeria. If you look at it, the end result of this is to have food ready for our people. Our people need to have food. The goal is how do we make food affordable and readily available for our populace.”
Calling on the Nigerian government, he said, “So with that, I think they’re doing wee, they will do more but we are also going to have do well to help them.”
The day ended with the director of IAR & T, Mrs. Veronica Obatolu and the Head of Crops and Seeds Production Unit, Dr. Adetunbi taking some members of the house committee on a tour of the agency’s ground. The group visited the Seeds Processing and Storage Section, where the committee members inspected the seeds, their processing area, their quality control process, their work spaces, their packaging and also the conditions of the machines used.
They also visited the site of the Kenaf improvement programme, where the head of Kenaf Improvement Programme, Dr. Adeniyan showed the committee members the usefulness of the Kenaf plants and the by-product where it has been transformed into POP materials.
