Investment In Agricultural Research, Way To Economic Turn-around

IF the agro-economy in Nigeria and African nations is to be major driver in raising the continents GDP, there should be major investments in agricultural research, and supporting the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) would be the most beneficial way to tap into the resources.This is the position of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, IITA's Ambassador for Africa, at the occasion marking the 45th anniversary of Africa's biggest international agricultural research centre.According to Godwin Atser, Corporate Communications Officer, West & Central Africa, food insecurity and poverty remain on top of the agenda of African governments but not many of them have been able to meet the Maputo declaration of allocating 10 per cent of budgets to agriculture.However, Obasanjo said that for Africa to maximize its full potential, the governments on the continent must support institutions such as IITA to acquire the technology and knowledge needed to create wealth.With Africa's population likely to hit nine billion by 2050, leaders need to think about the next generation and he said, 'The point is that the tools used 45 years ago are likely to be obsolete, unless we rejuvenate.'Drawing from a personal example to drive home the benefit of the Institute, with the experience from his farm, the former president said IITA helped save his farm and that of other farmers from the cassava mealybug pandemic in 1979.According to him, at the moment more that 70 per cent of improved maize varieties grown in Nigeria today have come from IITA-developed varieties.'We are lucky to have the largest research institute in our backyard and we should take advantage of it,' he said.Citing from hindsight the lag on the part of the government to meet up with its obligation to IITA, the president of the All Farmers Association of Nigeria (ALFAN), Senator Abdullahi Adamu, called on the nation to meet its statutory financial obligation. He pledged to initiate laws that would support research activities in Nigeria, stressing that 'research is a component of the value chain that demands attention.'Director General of IITA, Dr. Nteranya Sanginga, said rejuvenating the institution would be to the advantage of the nation and the rest of the continent.
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