Former President??Olusegun Obasanjo on Friday called on the Federal Government? and other stakeholders to ?partner in rejuvenating ?the International Institute of ?Tropical Agriculture (IITA) in Ibadan.
Speaking at the institute's headquarters on the occasion of ?its 45th anniversary, Obasanjo said? it was natural that the?tools??used by IITA in the last 45 years would be ?obsolete.
“Unless IITA rejuvenates ?and updates ?its tools for research as well as move along with the times, it will remain static and become irrelevant 15 to 20 years from now, ” the? elder statesman said.
Obasanjo, who is also IITA's Ambassador for Africa, ?praised the Ford Foundation for leading others in? the vision to establish the institute ?as a first class agricultural? outfit for? the continent.
He, ?however,? advised ?Nigeria and other African countries not to expect a bailout? of? IITA again by the foundation? after? 45 years.
Obasanjo said ?Africa was lucky to have an institution like IITA on the continent, adding that ?it was capable of creating wealth and generating employment for the present and future generations.
He urged African governments, agricultural investors and other stakeholders to invest in IITA to make it work optimally.
Earlier, the Director-General of? IITA, Dr Nteranya Sanginga, ?said ?the institute could become a failure if the tools presently being used were not upgraded.
He said?the ?tools??presently being used in the institute were ?”for today and not for tomorrow. ’’
Sanginga said as the host country of? IITA, Nigeria had a big role to play by leading other African countries in investing in the institute and ?providing food security for Africa.
The Director – General also expressed the belief that providing the continent with food? through IITA was? a powerful credential for Nigeria.
?This credential, he added, would give Nigeria an edge over rival African countries in its bid to secure a seat on the Security Council.
Sanginga urged Obasanjo and other stakeholders present at the forum tagged, ?”Rejuvenating IITA,’’ to help convince the Federal Government in investing in the institute’s future.
Among ?dignitaries ?at the occasion were the ?Rwandan ?High Commissioner in Nigeria, Mr Joseph Habinezer, a member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Alhaji Abdullahi Adamu, ?as well as ?representatives of ?the? CBN, ?Access Bank, Dangote Industries and Honeywell Flour Mills. (NAN)