Vice Chancellor of the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB ), Prof. Olusola Kehinde, has said the institution can feed the entire country if some measures are put in place to wade off some identified threats to food security.
With specific reference to paucity of funds, theft of farm produce, inadequate of manpower and dearth of necessary equipment to go into mechanised farming among others as threats to farming in the university, Kehinde declared that the over 10,000 hectares of land bequeathed to the institution is fertile enough to guarantee food security for the country.
The VC made the assertion at a press conference held yesterday in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital to herald the 31st convocation of the institution scheduled for Saturday.
Kehinde said the university had taken steps to revitalise the agriculture sector in such a commercial quantity that would be sufficient for the country .
He said the school was committed to practical agriculture, and explained that the institution is blessed with 10,200 hectares of land to realise its intention.
Kehinde explained that the university was in the process of collaborating with the federal, state government and other corporate organisations in the country to open up the virgin land within the institution’s campus to enable it to contribute its quota to alleviate challenges of food scarcity in the country.
He said the institution, in line with the vision of President Bola Tinubu’s administration of tackling food security headlong, has reactivated staff farming schemes and allocated farm lands to interested staff.
“We have started commercial production of plantain suckers using micro and macro propagation techniques. We have also embarked on commercial production of fish fingerlings, juveniles and table size. Also we have commenced commercial production of broilers for frozen chicken just as we have also been producing rabbits in commercial quantities”.
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