17/08/2026
Senate Committee on Agricultural Colleges and Institutions Post-Legislative Summit, supported by Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre and UK in Nigeria
PANEL DISCUSSION
1. Prof. Nneoma Obasi of Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, noted that existing curricula do not sufficiently capture the knowledge and practical skills needed today. He called for greater integration of practical learning and digital tools into agricultural education, noting that modernising the curriculum could also make agriculture more attractive to young people.
2. Prof. J.J. Atungwu, Provost, Federal College of Agriculture, MOOR Plantation, Ibadan, stressed the need for agricultural education and practice to keep pace with global trends and emerging technologies.
He noted that outdated content in Diploma and HND programmes is limiting students’ preparedness, and called for greater digitalisation of agriculture. He highlighted the potential of technologies such as IoT to improve farm yield estimates, enable more precise production planning and help reduce losses and theft on farms.
3. Prof. Yusuf Ado, Executive Director, Institute for Agricultural Research, Zaria, highlighted the need for agricultural institutions to respond to the changing climate and its impact on farming.
He noted that climate-smart agriculture rests on three pillars: adaptation, resilience and mitigation. He highlighted efforts to develop climate-smart and stress-resistant seeds, as well as the need to incorporate climate-smart agriculture into agricultural curricula rather than treating it as a standalone area of study.
4. Prof. M.L. Attanda, Executive Director, Nihort NG, discussed the importance of field-based learning in equipping students with practical agricultural skills.
He noted that traditional farming processes can be slow and highlighted the potential of biotechnology to improve efficiency. He also called for curricula reviews to provide students with more time for practical fieldwork and research, noting that agricultural demonstrations can require several months before producing results.
5. Prof. Chiedozie Egesi, Executive Director, National Root Crops Research Institute Umudike, called for a shift from teaching agriculture primarily as a production science to treating it as a market-driven, business and technology-based field.
He stressed the need to integrate areas such as value-chain analysis, market requirements, climate and biological risk management, GIS, drones, satellite technology, precision agriculture, AI, digital record-keeping and traceability across ND, HND and Bachelor's programmes, rather than waiting until postgraduate studies.
