The entire ancient city of Ibadan was on Friday, 23rd September, 2022, lit up by the presence of dignitaries across the country and abroad, as Dominican Community, in conjunction with the Students Christian Movement (SCM), hosted the Economy of Francesco at the Dominican University, Ibadan.
The event which started around 10:00 am was also followed virtually by some participants across the globe.
Titled “Promoting Agriculture through Intergenerational Dialogue”, as explained by the host, Rev. Fr Francis Chiadi, OP, “Make it Local”, that is the event, is aimed at bringing in more youths into the sector, by creating fora for idea sharing between the youths, who have the strength and elders, who have the experience. The padre welcomed all the guests and enjoined the participants to be deliberate about implementing the lessons of the event. It is always said that it is not enough to have a car, but warming the engine always keeps the car in good shape. “Knowledge that is not applied is a waste” is the overall message of the priest.
The governor of Oyo state, Engr Seyi Makinde, who declared the meeting open, stated that the “Pace-setter state” is well-poised to be the economic driver and food basket of not only Nigeria, but also the entire West Africa. He was represented by his Executive Assistant, Rev. Dr Idowu Ogedengbe. He explained that the event is timely and necessary for reducing the excessive dependence on importation, which has affected Nigeria’s foreign reserve, as the country’s major source of foreign exchange earnings, crude oil, is no longer reliable.
The founder of United Aid International, who was one of the keynote speakers, emphasized that research and technology can never be undermined in agriculture. According to the Purdue and Arkansas universities-trained don, who said that oil is an efficient material for preserving raw eggs, this finding, on using oil to preserve eggs, was a product of his research at the University of Purdue many years ago and contained in his inaugural lecture; it was born out of his desire to find alternative to electricity, due to incessant power outage in Nigeria. He enjoined all to find out alternatives in all aspects of farming processes.
The don also stressed the need for everyone to be an entrepreneur irrespective of their profession. In his speech, which was centered on the challenges of agricultural entrepreneur and the possible solutions, Prof Ikeme highlighted population growth, deforestation, limited land, climate change as the major challenges facing agricultural practice and put forward sustainable use of natural resources, application of food production technology, post-harvest preservation and packaging as possible solutions to the problems.
Recall that CEOAFRICA had earlier reported that the event was scheduled by the Pope, to hold globally between 22nd and 24th of September, in Assisi, Vatican; while the main conference, seminars and workshops will hold on the 23rd, which some regions may domesticate based on the peculiarity of their settings. The address of Pope was the climax of the event. The holy father explained that it has been his heartbeat to see how to upgrade and sustain the economy of Asisi and the world at large, in respect of the works of Saint Francis many centuries ago. This is also part of the United Nations’ policy—Sustainable Development Goal.
The other keynote speaker, at the domesticated version held in Ibadan, was the Executive Director, Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria (CRIN), Dr Patrick Adebola. He stressed the need for the elderly generation to adopt the modern Information and Communication Technology (ICT) facilities, while encouraging the youths to embrace farming. He spoke through the Head, Tea and Coffee Research, Dr Rotimi Ipinmoroti.
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