Ajayi Crowther University and IITA Forge Strategic Partnership to Advance Biotech and Agripreneurship

A high-powered delegation from Ajayi Crowther University (ACU), Oyo, led by the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Ebunoluwa Oduwole, has paid a working visit to the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Ibadan, to explore extensive areas of collaboration ranging from biotechnology and laboratory equipment to youth engagement in agripreneurship, ICT, and cybersecurity.

Upon arrival, the team was received by the Director, IITA West Africa, Prof. Michael Abberton, who welcomed the Vice-Chancellor and her entourage. Prof. Abberton presented a brief slide overview of the institute’s activities, highlighting IITA’s role as a leading research partner focused on improving food security, reducing poverty, and enhancing livelihoods across sub-Saharan Africa.

He explained that IITA’s mandate includes developing sustainable agricultural solutions, improving crop yields for staples such as cassava, yam, maize, cowpea, soybean, and banana/plantain, managing natural resources, and fostering youth entrepreneurship in agriculture.

On capacity development, Prof. Abberton disclosed that ACU students have already been interfacing with IITA over time. According to him, 20 ACU students have undergone Industrial Training (IT) and Students’ Industrial Work Experience Scheme (SIWES) training at the institute. Additionally, three graduates have served through the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) at IITA, while three others have engaged as graduate interns.

Responding to Prof. Abberton, Prof. Oduwole described Ajayi Crowther University as an emerging institution, founded twenty years ago, with a core vision of teaching, learning, research, and exemplary leadership for humanity. She noted that the university currently boasts of 13 faculties and 45 accredited courses at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels.

Prof. Oduwole also seized the opportunity to reveal that in the coming weeks, an accreditation team would be visiting the university for the accreditation of its Medical Sciences programmes.

Speaking on the purpose of the visit, she stated: “The major objective is to explore mutually beneficial areas of collaboration and partnership, and to advance impactful research.”

As a follow-up, the Dean, Faculty of Agriculture, Prof. Moses Adebayo; the Head of Department, Agricultural Economics, Dr. Rhoda Adeniyi; and the Head of Department, Crop and Animal Science, Dr. Tolulope Faniyi, all commended IITA for its track record and called for a strategic partnership that would directly benefit ACU students across various areas of interest.

In his response, Prof. Abberton welcomed the proposals, emphasising that the formal signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) should not delay practical cooperation between both parties.

“We need to focus on what we could do practically, step by step,” he said.

The working visit concluded with a facility tour of IITA’s state-of-the-art laboratories and other areas of interest within the institute, leaving both parties optimistic about a future of robust collaboration in agricultural research, academic exchange, and technological innovation.