IAR 2017 Annual Research Review and REFILS demand for timely inputs supply

IAR 2017 Annual Research Review and REFILS Group Picture

·        *Advocate for mandate review of research institutes

·        *Says 2016 cropping season successful…

The 2017 annual research review and planning meeting organized by Institute of Agricultural Research (IAR) attracted many stakeholders with a call for the need to review mandates of these Institutes just as proper funding was among the focal points.
Meanwhile, the overview 2016 cropping scheme performance was described successful by scientists due to heavy rainfall compared to the previous years as questions on measurement for assessment description was asked.

The position of Hon. Munir BabbaDanagundi, a member, House Committee on Agriculture, National Assembly tallied with the advocacy of deputy vice-chancellor, Administration, Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) Zaria, Prof. Ezra Amans and Acting Executive Director, National Agricultural Research Council ( ARCN) A.A Voh asking for viewing  of Research Institutes’ mandate based on environmental needs. 

Amans said on tomato and pepper improved seeds varieties, that the positive impact of IAR on this crop must be enjoyed by farmers within the ecology thereby calling for Research Institutes’ mandate review that would meet the immediate environmental needs.

Commented he: “the intervention on tomato ebola is having positive impact on production, and there is need to review IAR mandate to include tomato and pepper based on the release six varieties in the last 30years of its research mandate on this crop. The review of policy by FG has taken away mandates of perishable crops from this zone. This institute cannot sit without seeking power to look into crops like tomato and pepper that is largely produced in this region”

Supporting this position, Hon. Danagundi said the movement of IAR tomato research mandate to National Horticultural Research Institute, Ibadan where many of the tomatoes lines cannot be found thereby called on ARCN to utilize its mandate through National Assembly to carry review saying “many of these tomato lines cannot be found in NIHORT anymore as farmers are losing a lot”

However the speech read by the Executive Director, IAR Prof. I.U Abubakar had attended to the questions raised by scientists who want to know the yard stick measurement of the success achievement that 2016 cropping program of the Institute has recorded.

In his speech, Prof. Abubakar has said that the institute in the last cropping season had recorded success despite paucity of fund for research programme saying “ in the 2016 cropping season, our scientist conducted different researches in areas of genetic improvement of our mandate crops, crop protection, irrigation, soil science, agricultural mechanization, crop management practices, economics and extension” 

Prof. Abubakar further stated that “three new high yielding maize varieties SAMMAZ 49, SAMMAZ 50 and SAMMAZ 51 were released in 2016. The two varieties SAMMAZ 49 and 50 are hybrid with orange and white grain colours respectively. While SAMMAZ 49 is pro-vitamin “A” hybrid and yield up to 7.8 tonnes per hectare, SAMMAZ 50 is drought and striga tolerant with yields of 9.3 tons per hectare. The third variety SAMMAZ 51 is open pollinated, white grain colour and yield .5 tonnes per hectare. This brings to a total of 51 maize varieties released by IAR to date. 

Already, efforts are being geared towards releasing additional 10 maize varieties in the coming season. The has several candidate varieties of sorghum, groundnut, cowpea, cotton and jatropha being prepared for release soon. The candidate varieities are not only superior in yield to existing varieties, but address most biotic and abiotic stresses. I am glad to inform you that IAR through its collaborative research with ICRISAT under the groundnut project “groundnut up scaling project for small holder farmers in Ghana, Mali and Nigeria” demonstrated the performance of IAR groundnut Sheller at several locations in five of her mandate states: Jigawa, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi and Sokoto with outstanding results”

 “  the cowpea out scaling project which is funded by USAID and jointly implemented by IAR and IITA has so far distributed 18.8 tons of five cowpea seed varieties ( SAMPEA 10, SAMPEA 13, SAMPEA14, UAM109 1046-6-1, UAM09 1051-1) to farmers which were planted on 1,350 hectare for multiplication. About 8000 farmers, extension agents and seed technicians have been trained and 780 households and 43 secondary schools were also trained and sensitized on cowpea nutrition. The project has reached an estimate population of about 10,000.000 people via radio and it has successful established functional innovation platform in Kano, Katsina and Sokoto states” said IAR ED. 

The need to take this technologies through extension services channel was the opinion of Director, North West, FMARD , Mr. Remi Adeoye who commended the field work of IAR, and suggested the need for strong linkage between research work and extension clamoring for sufficient funding like the system in Argentina just as former Director, IAR and Vice Chancellor at Alkami University, Katsina Prof. Y. Ado has rightly pointed saying mechanization Institutes have developed many simple tools without off takers thereby posited the need to ban any importation of any machinery that have been developed in Nigeria.

According to Prof Ado “ in the 80s as student, the Mohammadu Buhari led government ban malt and barley, and this led to Prof. Ogunlana to breed sorghum to replace malt and barley which was sponsor by Nigeria Brewery. The Industry must challenge the research Institute to produce for their specification while extension must transfer the new technologies to the farmers”

However, the Acting Executive Director, Agricultural Research Council Research (ARCN) Prof. A.A Voh reiterated the commitment of his council to ensuring research institutes’ responsiveness to farmers’ need with the view of up scaling production for both consumption and export, added that the FMARD was willing to close the productivity and export challenges in the legume and oil seed thereby demanding a brief from IAR which Prof. C.A Echekwu promised to present to ARCN.

Prof Voh said that “the council will be interested to know your effort as regards legume and oil seeds programme on cowpea. I want a brief on it for me to interface with FMARD for the next step of action as two gaps have been identified which borders on low productivity and export challenges”

 He added there was need for economic analysis of research technologies that farmers can easily off take saying “ farmers face difficulties in obtaining knowledge and services that could improve their cultivation practices, increase their production outputs, reduce drudgery, reduce post-harvest losses and provide for them with acess to reliable market and policy information”

The Country Director, SAA-SG2000, Prof. Sani Miko Ahmead pointed that farmers want tools that would farm, plant and harvest in order to reduce production cost and reduce drudgery saying scientist must come up with solution as he frown on the agricultural professional practitioners pointed they need just one umbrella to fight unprofessionalism in the sector in Nigeria.

The opening paper at the REFILs by former Director, NAERLs, and now a WACOT consultant, Dr. Mohammed Umaru commended the effort of research and extension services saying the government and private sectors’ inputs and credit agencies were the ones that have failed the agricultural system due to untimely responsiveness to improved seeds, fertilizers cum mechanization and credit provision to farmers saying all these were not in the custody of researchers and extension officers.  

Dr. Umaru said that the input agencies have let down the nation’s agricultural productivity as they have not adequately given to farmers seeds and fertilizers on time that would meet appropriate planting seasons when all scientists and extension must have done their own parts pointed that government and private agencies always fail in given loan, seeds, fertilizer, mechanization etc. on time, but not researcher or extension workers’ fault.