• Gives FUOYE varsity N1b for agric commercial farm
• ‘Lecturers get N430m research grants’

The Federal Government has inaugurated the National Economic Council (NEC) Technical Sub-Committee on Livestock Development, reaffirming its commitment to repositioning the livestock sector as a key driver of economic growth, food security, and national cohesion.

Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Abubakar Bagudu, who inaugurated the committee in Abuja yesterday, said that the sub-committee was set up to harmonise existing policy frameworks and fast-track the development of an actionable roadmap for consideration and adoption by the NEC.

He said that, given the urgency of the task and the tight schedules of state governors, the NEC approved the formation of a technical subcommittee under his chairmanship to oversee the process effectively.

The minister explained that President Bola Tinubu’s active engagement with the National Economic Council aligns with Nigeria’s federal constitutional structure, which assigns responsibility for agriculture and food security—including livestock development—to the federal, state, and local councils.

He, therefore, urged state commissioners to take ownership of the process, emphasising that widespread acceptance of the committee’s recommendations by the NEC would facilitate the mobilisation of extra resources from states and local authorities, while also attracting development partners, among others.

In another development, Vice Chancellor of the Federal University, Oye-Ekiti (FUOYE), Prof. Abayomi Fasina, has said that the Federal Government is implementing a major initiative to boost agricultural production by providing special funding to federal universities, with several institutions receiving N1 billion each, including FUOYE.

Fasina, who disclosed this yesterday, during a media briefing to herald the 10th convocation ceremony of the university, said that the idea to give universities N1 billion each for agriculture, infrastructure and production is for them to be able to feed the students and the communities surrounding them.

He said that some academic members of staff had got grants of more than N430 million, adding that he has attracted more than $55,000 finding programme to the university.

The VC, who said that the institution had successfully executed over 160 infrastructural projects across its campuses, disclosed that the former vice chancellors of the university who are over 70 years, including Profs Chinedu Nebo, Isaac Asuzu and Kayode Soremekun, would be honoured with the emeritus professor title in recognition of their contributions to the institution.