FAO strengthens collaboration with the academia to achieve food security
The Njala University in Sierra Leone had talks with Bukar Tijani, FAO Assistant Director-General and Regional Representative for Africa
The achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030, especially in the areas of food security and poverty reduction, requires strong and enhanced partnerships with different sections of the society. The role of higher learning institutions are very key in achieving these ambitious goals as the majority of poor people in developing countries, including Sierra Leone, live in rural areas and education is a key factor in helping to reduce the level of poverty.
The Assistant Director-General and Regional Representative for Africa of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Bukar Tijani, recently engaged the administration of the Njala University in Sierra Leone on ways to strengthen collaboration to address agriculture and food security issues.
Bukar Tijani visited the country on the occasion of the 13th regional meeting of the African Caribbean Pacific-European Union (ACP-EU) Joint Parliamentary Assembly for West Africa and to launch the Regional Overview of Food Security and Nutrition in Africa 2016.
His discussion with the administration of the Njala University bordered on engaging in research, information and knowledge management, curriculum and project development in line with emerging development priorities. The Vice Chancellor and Principal of Njala University, Professor Ernest Ndomahina, welcomed FAO support to the institution over the years. He outlined key progress made by the institution in the areas of teaching, research and community service.
He, however, stated that the university is challenged with resources to properly undertake research activities, develop curriculum and sustain the implementation of community development projects. The university needs to investigate the causes of low yield in rice production in recent times in the country, sustain the implementation of its aquaculture project, develop more curriculum, especially a veterinary school, and facilitate the access to recent publications and other learning materials.
Bukar Tijani encouraged the University to collaborate with the rural farmers, members of the Agribusiness Centres (ABCs) to improve their productivity and practical teaching. “The ABC system can be a role model on agribusiness and one-stop shop. Training modules can be replicated in other parts of Africa”, he advised.
“FAO has a repository of publications – online and hardcopies – that are very essential for higher learning institutions, especially Njala University, which is specialized in agriculture related-courses”, he added.
The Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Food Security, Lovell Thomas, lamented that most of the agriculture graduates have limited themselves to offices and not the field, where there are unlimited opportunities for them to better test their knowledge and service the communities. “Agricultural researches should not be limited in books and classrooms, but should be filtered in the field”, he advised.
A concrete long-standing cooperation
FAO has, over the years been working with Njala University in the areas of research, community development and recently on curriculum development. The Organization has, among other things provided vehicle, motorbike and other technical equipment in support of the University teaching radio station, developed a curriculum on the Right-to-Food and Nutrition, trained lecturers and provided textbooks on nutrition.
The FAO high/level delegation also visited some FAO project sites and met with stakeholders in the country’s food and nutrition security sector. He stopped at the Gbotima Agribusiness Business Centre in Njala Town to launch a livestock vaccination programme and assess the facilities at the centre.
“It is one of the ABCs to which that FAO has provided finances, to embark on livestock rearing as an alternative source of livelihood after the Ebola disease outbreak, two years ago. This support is being provided with funds from the Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA) for post-Ebola disease recovery”, explained Tipo Nyabenyi, FAO Representative to Sierra Leone.
Also visited were operations and facilities at the Serology and Monocular Biology Laboratory on Njala campus, jointly supported by an ECTAD project with funding from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) under the One Health Initiative.
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Contact:
Jaward Keifa
Communication Officer, Sierra Leone
