By Nkechi Eze
The Executive Secretary of the Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria (ARCN), Dr. Abubakar Adamu Dabban, has charged the Federal Colleges of Agriculture (FCAs) across the country to redouble their commitment to training, research, and extension services in line with the Federal Government’s food security agenda.
Dr. Dabban gave the charge during his official tour of the Federal College of Agriculture, Akure, where he commended the management and staff of the institution for their dedication despite the challenges confronting the sector. He emphasized that the Colleges remain critical to advancing the mandate of ARCN and the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, especially at a time when agriculture is being repositioned under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda and the recently declared state of emergency on food security.
“Agriculture remains a major driver of Nigeria’s economy, and the expectations are even greater now. We must strengthen research, training, and extension to fast-track innovation, boost productivity, and help Nigeria achieve the SDGs by 2030,” he stated.
The ARCN boss disclosed that the Council is working with the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) to ensure that agricultural research institutions benefit from its interventions. He added that the Council has also re-initiated the review of the Conditions and Schemes of Service for the National Agricultural Research Institutes (NARIs) and FCAs, in collaboration with the Office of the Head of Civil Service of the Federation, with a view to improving staff welfare and institutional performance.
According to him, ongoing reforms include strengthening the Monitoring and Evaluation system, updating management guidelines for both NARIs and FCAs, and advocating for the upgrading of laboratories, workshops, and infrastructure across the institutions.
Dr. Dabban directed the Colleges to strictly adhere to administrative and operational guidelines by submitting annual budgets, quarterly and annual reports promptly, maintaining proper communication channels with the Council, providing updated staff nominal rolls annually, and forwarding lists of staff due for promotion with relevant documentation ahead of examinations. He further instructed them to forward new research technologies developed to the Council for system-wide updates, while also urging them to accord due respect to ARCN staff on official assignments.
“Our collective responsibility is to ensure that agriculture drives growth, creates jobs, and guarantees food security for our nation,” he stressed.
He also explained that efforts were ongoing to create a separate and detailed condition of service for both the Colleges and the Research Institutes, to further streamline operations and enhance efficiency in the sector.
Receiving the ARCN delegation, the Acting Provost of the Federal College of Agriculture, Akure, Professor Alayande Folorunsho, expressed appreciation to Dr. Dabban and his team for their support. He appealed for renewed efforts to restore ETF and TETFund interventions to colleges and institutes of agriculture to enable them access much-needed funding for research and infrastructure.
The Provost also raised concerns about persistent land-grabbing threats facing the college, lamenting that the situation has endangered both students and staff. He called for urgent intervention to safeguard the institution’s land and guarantee the safety of its community.
