The Executive Secretary (ES) Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria (ARCN), Prof. Garba Sharabutu has said the newly commissioned agricultural radio and television stations of the agency are meant to fill the gap of insufficient airtime allocations being given on other stations to air improved technologies news on agricultural research to farmers.
Prof. Sharabutu said this at the official commissioning of the two communication outfits at the Agency promises last week Monday at Abuja.The ARCN ES explained that food
system positioning of the country needs a strategic communication with sufficient air time dedicated for research and
technologies innovation extension to farmers on regular basis at a very
affordable prices saying that high rate of commercial payment in both public
and private media organizations are too expensive for any agricultural
institutes to cope with.
Sharabutu pointed that “Before now, the
agricultural research system has relied on either national or commercial radio
stations. Most of these radio stations are self-sustaining, and always seek for
funding through every program we aired, and by the time we computed from all
the agricultural research institutes and put up what is needed to actually take
the messages to the people that we consider to establish these agricultural
television and radio stations for the benefit of farmers’ access to information’’
Commissioning the facilities,
Agriculture and Rural Development minister, Dr. Mohammad Abubakar buttressed
that the facilities would strengthen research collaborations, and as well
provide a platform for timely dissemination of agricultural information and
showcasing of agricultural interventions in the country.
According to him “This official
commissioning of this world-class facilities comprising of a digital museum and
documentation centre for referencing agricultural research information and
knowledge, an electronic library, which is to aid research by providing greater
access to recent advances in agricultural sciences using the television and
radio stations as link to millions of Nigerians with firsthand agricultural
information’’
The President, Fishery Association of
Nigeria, Otunba Gabriel Ogunsanya wants the facilities to be used to enhance
transfer of improved technologies to farmers in the grassroots in the country
saying it would enhance food productivity system with transfer of best agronomics
knowledge to farmers for practical use.
Otunba Ogunsanya said that the launched
of the stations would help to further disseminate agricultural information to
farmers adding that lack of it, cum extension workers and access to quality
seed have resulted to many of the farmers’ losses in the past years.
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