VC decries exclusion of agric varsities from cassava summit
From Mohammed Abubakar, Abuja
THOUGH the just-concluded summit on cassava was lauded as a means of boosting the production and export of the product, it has been faulted on the ground that universities of agriculture did not participate in it.
Vice-Chancellor of the University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (UNAAB), Prof. Israel Adu, condemned the oversight while speaking with reporters in Abuja at the weekend.
Commending President Olusegun Obasanjo and his cabinet for organising the programme, Adu said if sustained, it would enhance cassava production and export.
But while lamenting the non-involvement of the universities of agriculture in the programme, he admitted that they were involved at the initial stage.
He stated: "We were part of the technical committee that drew up the programme, but at the seminar, we were not there."
Adu said that even though the chancellor and chairman of Governing Council of UNAAB was there to present a paper, he did so "may be in his personal capacity as a private farmer, but not as the chairman of council of UNAAB."
He blamed the "oversight" on the fact that it was the Federal Ministry of Commerce that co-ordinated the seminar.
He stated: "That must be why some of the relevant agencies were left out. This morning, I have discussed with the NUC (National Universities Commission) Executive Secretary and we are making a point on that.
"Like I said earlier, we were involved in the earlier preparation, my appeal now is that henceforth, they should bring us in because we re very relevant to the success of the programme since it forms part of the universities' mandate."
Adu said the dream of the Federal Government to engage in a large-scale production was realisable through boosting export.
He said: "A lot of farmers produce cassava in this country, but when it comes to the marketing, it becomes a problem. However, once there is a guaranteed market for any product, you can be sure that there will be production.
"A farmer wants to get money and once he is sure that he can get the money, he is going to produce fully and I am sure with this gate being opened to our farmers, they are being encouraged to produced more cassava in this country".
According to the vice-chancellor, going by the amount of cassava being produced in the country, "we can address our local needs and even export the product because there are a lot of farmers that are there."
He said UNAAB had taken the lead in improving the technology of cassava production.
Adu stated: "For those who have been on our campus, we are in the era of technology generation, you will see the cassava that we have planted there.
"We have a cassava processing unit in our university where we process our own cassava. I can tell you confidently today that our "fufu" is in the market in this country and because of that technology, we are able to remove the odour associated with "fufu." We have been able to package it dry, instead of wet and you can now take it as a gift to somebody and even for your own home."
