E-Discussion

APRNet Members as Change Agents Driving Projects Aimed at Transforming Lives of Youths, Women and the Less Privileged Members of Africa through Grantsmanship

From left to right are Prof. Anthony O. Onoja and Prof. Ibisime Etela at the onboarding of TAG Dev 2.0 in Kampala Uganda by February 2024

Members of Agricultural Policy Research Network (APRNet) are quietly driving positive changes in Africa using research grantsmanship to build capacities of African universities as well as youths, women and underserved members of the societies in their universities. One of such evidence is indicated from the recent success stories recorded by the APRNet President, Prof. Anthony O. Onoja and Prof. Ibisime Etela, both Executive Council members of APRNet working at the University of Port Harcourt. Early this year, (2024) the President of APRNet, Prof. Anthony O. Onoja was part of the focal persons (with Prof. Etela as a team member) that wrote the proposal which birthed the EU funded Climate Research and Education to Advancing Green Development in Africa (CREATE-GreenAfrica). The CREATE Green Africa Project (https://create-greenafrica.udsm.ac.tz/index.php/news).launched in Brussels, Belgium in March 2024 is a consortium grant to University of Port Harcourt and other members including: University of Dar Es Salam, Makelle University, University of the Free State, Hochschule Fur Angewandte Wissenschaften Hamburg - Haw Hamburg, Zimbabwe Open University and University of Ghana. Africa. This is a 3-year scholarship programme funded to the tune of about!.8 Million Euros to facilitate exchange programmes (mobility) of M.Sc and PhD students as well as staff of the consortium universities across Africa. The scholarship call has been launched in July, 2024 and Prof. Tony Onoja is the focal person at the University of Port Harcourt.

In 2023, Prof. Etela led a team comprising Prof. A. O. Onoja and others who collaborated in drafting a proposal that won another consortium research grant funded by MasterCard Foundation and RUFORUM to build capacities of staff, youths, women and underrepresented groups in Africa with a view of preparing them to be employed in decent agribusiness based jobs. Prof. Ibisime Etela and Prof. Anthony O. Onoja were in Kampala, Uganda, in February 2024 for the onboarding of the Master Card Foundation/RUFORUM, Transforming African Agricultural Universities to Meaningfully Contribute to Africa’s Growth and Development (TAGDev 2.0) program. This 10-year initiative (2023-2033) aims to strengthen universities and technical vocational education and training (TVET) institutions to empower young Africans and their institutions in driving inclusive, equitable, and climate-resilient transformations in agriculture and agrifood systems. The program offers scholarships to economically disadvantaged yet academically competent African students to support them in completing their studies. Both female and male applicants are welcome, with special encouragement for applications from females, refugees, and persons with disabilities. Prof. Ibisime Etela is the focal person at the host Nigerian university, University of Port Harcourt, in this consortium. The Project has been formally launched in Windhoek, Namibia (still ongoing as at this time) and about 170 universities and Vice Chancellors with their management team, Focal persons and Faculty teams are in attendance at the ceremony. The Mastercard Foundation and its esteemed partners in this initiative, including Gulu University, Egerton University, University of Cape Coast (Ghana), Universite Nationale d'Agriculture (Benin), University of Bamenda (Cameroon), University of Free State (South Africa), Universite Mohammed VI, Polytechnique (Morocco), Uganda Martyrs University (Uganda), University of Eldoret (Kenya), University of Port Harcourt (Nigeria), Malawi University of Science and Technology (Malawi) and Africa University (Zimbabwe), promise to leave a lasting legacy on African agriculture by promoting inclusivity, fostering innovation, and empowering young people. The program is set to ensure sustainable and equitable growth in Africa's agricultural sector. 

https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/MASTERCARD-INC-17163/news/Ruforum-and-the-Mastercard-Foundation-Extend-Partnership-to-Transform-African-Agricultural-Universit-47642792/

From left to right: Prof Atungwu (FUNAAB); Prof Etela (UniPort); Prof. Achike (UNN); Dr Ingweye (UniPort) at the TAGDev 2.0 Program pitching session on 11th August 2024 at the 2nd RUFORUM Triennial Conference at Hilton Hotel, Windhoek, Namibia.

Prof. Etela and Onoja with some RUFORUM Staff during the Onboarding Programme of TAG Dev 2.0 at Uganda in early 2024

Experts have said the Agricultural Promotion Policy (APP) of the Federal Government has not achieved the intended results four years after its launch due to inadequate infrastructure.

According to them, when policies are not backed up by infrastructure such as good road networks, preservation technologies, adequate electricity supply, creation of enabling environment for farmers and credit facilities to value chain players, such policies are prone to failure.

President of the Agricultural Policy Research Network (APRINET), Dr Anthony Onoja, who said this during the fifth APRINET/USAID annual national multi-stakeholders’ forum, explained that though there had been a significant increase in food production, especially cassava, inability of farmers to transport the roots to the market due to bad road networks and high cost of transportation had led to a glut of the product.

He said: “The glut affected farmers negatively last year, making most of them to be discouraged and moved away from cassava production.”
Onoja maintained that to make agricultural policies relevant, farmers and the intended users should be carried along, saying any agricultural policies that did not involve the farmers would not succeed.

He said that APRINET had the primary mandate to bring agricultural stakeholders together to ensure inclusiveness in the agricultural policies in Nigeria.

He added that the essence of the forum was to bring about change in agricultural policies that are not favorable to Nigerian farmers and the masses.
President of the National Association of Nigerian Traders, Ben Ukwoha, stressed that research institutes should redouble efforts to produce research that would be beneficial to the farmers, enhance food security and bring agriculture out.

To achieve this, he mentioned that research institutes should not only deploy funds to paying workers’ salaries but also must ensure that they are innovative, producing new technologies.

I am pleased to announce the successful outcome of the proposal for a competitive grant bidded for in September 2023 by APRNet team under the mentorship of Prof. Anthony Onoja, APRNet President. 

We have been informed that the APRNet team, with Dr (Mrs) Ebi Ansa as Principal Investigator and Dr Zelda Omasanuwa as Research Supervisor, both fishery experts (with Zelda in both fishery and economics) are going to conduct a survey on the theme:  

 Bridging the Data Gap for an Evidence-based National Fisheries and Aquaculture Policy (2024-2028). The grant is worth approximately 23, 000 US dollars. 

The evidence they will generate from the field will be used to support the ongoin Review and Drafting of Fishery and Aquaculture Policy for Nigeria (2024-2028), which is being led by Prof. Anthony Onoja, President, Agricultural Policy Research Network. 

Other young scholars in APRNet are going to be involved as enumerators in the project. The contract was signed by The APRNet President, IFPRI team and Dr Ebi Ansa last week. 

Congratulations to the APRNet research team.

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