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| Dr Eteakamba Ukpong |
Dr Eteakamba Ukpong,
Head of Forestry Department, University of Uyo has advocated for
effective collaboration between the Ministry of Agriculture and research
institutions in solving the myriad of problems plaguing the agriculture
sector. He decried the situation where institutions and organizations
work in isolation while attempting to solve a collective economic
challenge, describing the approach as counter-productive.
The
magnitude of the retrogressive influence of this anomaly was brought to
the fore yesterday, November 11, 2015 when the CEO and Editor in Chief
of AgroNigeria, Barrister Richard-Mark Mbaram, made a brief courtesy
call on the don at the University of Uyo, while on a premium
business/working visit to Akwa Ibom State.
In
an unreserved remark by the don, he unequivocally emphasized the
futility of the Ministry of Agriculture trying to provide solutions to
several problems faced by farmers, without consulting institutions that
should conduct research and systematic investigation into same,
establish facts, reach new conclusions and proffer appropriate
recommendations for application. Consequently, these challenges to a
great extent remain unsolved.
The
dearth of information from the ministry on prevailing agricultural
challenges faced by the society impels the universities to create
problems and projects, and subsequently embark on researches that are
not useful for national development. “On our shelves are research works
that have been published in reputable journals, but the results of such
researches do not impact directly on the society, and are consequently
not useful for the growth of the agriculture sector or the development
of the economy”, Dr Ukpong observed.
“Research
should be for development, and to achieve this, it must be focused on
fundamental challenges faced by farmers. The result of such research
impacts directly on the society and enhances the development of
agriculture”, he opined
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