CTA - UNIPORT Sign Agreement

The University of Port Harcourt has entered into understanding with the Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA), The Netherlands (www.cta.int) on books and other reference materials for developing a specialized agricultural reference library for the IARD. An agreement has been signed to that effect. Please, click here for details about CTA.

IITA - UNIPORT Sign Memorandum of Understanding

The IARD enters research for development agreement with the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Ibadan, Nigeria (www.iita.org) on collaborative research. For this purpose, a five-year memorandum of understanding has been endorsed by IITA and the University of Port Harcourt on behalf of the IARD.

 

Under the arrangement, both Parties Agreed to encourage the following:

 

a) Collaboration in research and development on topics of mutual interest.

b) Development of joint research and development project proposals for submission to prospectivedonors for funding.

c) Organization of joint research activities.

d) Organization of joint conferences and workshops.

e) Linkages between IITA and UNIPORT scientists.

f) Placement and/or exchange of students.

g) Exchange of research materials, publications and other materials of common interest.

h) Inclusion of results of collaborative research, either in full or in summary, in IARD and IITA reports.

 

Please, click here for details about IITA.

UNIPORT Joins ANAFE

The IARD has applied to be a member of the African Network for Agriculture, Agroforestry and Natural Resources Education (ANAFE). The membership entitles the IARD and, indeed the University of Port Harcourt, to benefit from the activities of ANAFE (http://anafe-africa.org/), especially, in the areas of education and training for staff and students. Please, click here for details about the acitivites of ANAFE in Africa.

 

About IARD

The Institute of Agricultural Research and Development (IARD) of the University of Port Harcourt was one of the academic units approved by the National Universities Commission (NUC) of Nigeria for the University at its inception in 1975. However, the IARD was only to be established in 1982; seven years after the NUC approval. Its mandate is to tackle the problems of agriculture and rural development of the Niger Delta of Nigeria, so as to develop the agricultural potentials of the region. The overall research goal of the Institute is to mitigate the challenges of agriculture as they affect peasants and small-scale farmers in the region.

 

The process of making the new IARD commenced in 2010. Presently, programmes and activities of the Institute have been reviewed in line with current scientific, economic and social realities in the Niger Delta and global best practices. As a result, the ongoing research of the IARD centers around the new vision, mission and core values targeted at rebranding the Institute as the preferred agricultural research, training and development institute.

 

Vision

To be a world class institute where agricultural, fisheries and forestry research, training and development are conducted in a sustainable manner based on global best practices.

 

The IARD Mission

To develop and propagate improved relevant innovative agricultural, fisheries, forestry and environmental management technologies in synergy with indigenous practices in the Niger Delta, thereby contribute to attainment of the strategic national and international goals for poverty reduction, food security and sustainable environmental management.

 

Core Values

We ensure professionalism, integrity, excellence, and dedication in what we do.

 

Statement of Goal

Continuous reorganization and rebranding to, effectively, carry out institutional mandate in a world of globalization and changing climate.

 

Medium-Term (2012-2014) Objectives

§  To enhance research capacity building for a more holistic institutional development.

§  To develop strategies for proactive sourcing of research grants, scholarships and fellowships.

§  To engage in and maintain collaboration and strategic partnership with public and private institutions with similar goal and vision.

§  To initiate and sustain academic programmes (certificate and professional certificate).

 

Research Capacity

Generally, the Institute possesses research competence in fish farming, rice cultivation, propagation of indigenous food crops, vegetables and local spices, farming systems, agroforestry, non-timber products and wildlife interventions. Other areas are poultry and livestock production, exploitation of underutilized animal and plant species, agricultural pests and diseases control, food processing and preservation, extension and outreach programmes, and environmental management. Thus, the IARD is the strategic agricultural research arm of the Faculty of Agriculture and, indeed, the University of Port Harcourt. In addition, the IARD scientists also serve as lecturers in the various departments of the Faculty and the University.

Contact Us

Mailing Address:
 The Director

Institute of Agricultural Research and Development (IARD)
Faculty of Agriculture
University of Port Harcourt, Choba
PMB 5323, Port Harcourt
Post Code 50001
Rivers State
NIGERIA.

Email: iard@uniport.edu.ng;

Alternate Email: ibisime.etela@uniport.edu.ng.

Parent Website: http://www.uniport.edu.ng

Blogger: http://iard-uniport.blogspot.com

Mobile: +234 (0) 703.437.8380.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/iarduniport

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/iard.uniport.

Director's Corner

Dr. Ibisime Etela is an Animal Scientist by profession and holds bachelors and master’s degrees from the Rivers State University of Science and Technology, and a doctorate degree from the University of Benin, all in Nigeria. He specialized in ruminant nutrition and production with special interest in the nutritional evaluation of locally available feed resources mostly crop residues and agro-by-products, their utilization by ruminant livestock (cattle; sheep; goat) and feed quality prediction using near infrared reflectance spectroscopy (NIRS) under resource-poor crop/livestock systems, at least cost. His recent research works focused on utilization of spent mushroom substrates and palm kernel cake by West African dwarf goats, groundnut and cowpea crop residues by sheep, and sweet potato crop residues by calves/lactating cows using improved crop varieties that are very important food/feed crops in Nigeria and other parts of sub-Saharan Africa.
 

Since joining the University of Port Harcourt in December 2005, he has published over 30 journal articles, a book chapter, and 16 refereed conference papers mostly in international and others in local journals and at conferences. His major contribution to knowledge and research for development was his research on sweet potato forage first on 20 sweet potato genotypes as part of his master’s thesis and later on three ‘best-bets’ selected from the 20 for his doctorate dissertation. The three had earlier exhibited superior agronomic performance and socio-economic importance across agro-ecological zones in Nigeria. Parts of the results from these studies are contained in the following three publications:

 

 

i) Etela, I., Larbi, A., Ikhatua, U.J., and Bamikole, M.A. (2009) Supplementing Guinea grass with fresh sweet potato foliage for milk by Bunaji and N’Dama cows in early lactation. Livestock Science, 120(1-2): 87-95, doi: 10.1016/j.livsci.2008.04.010. (The Netherlands)

ii) Etela, I., Larbi, A., Bamikole, M.A., Ikhatua, U.J., and Oji, U.I. (2008) Rumen degradation characteristics of sweet potato foliage and performance by local and crossbred calves fed milk and foliage from three cultivars. Livestock Science, 115(1): 20-27, doi: 10.1016/j.livsci.2007.06.004.(The Netherlands)

iii) Larbi, A., Etela, I., Nwokocha, H.N., Oji, U.I., Anyanwu, N.J., Gbaraneh, L.D., Anioke, S.C., Balogun, R.O., and Muhammad, I.R. (2007) Fodder and tuber yields, and fodder quality of sweet potato cultivars at different maturity stages in the West African humid forest and savanna zones. Animal Feed Science and Technology, 135(1&2): 126-138. (The Netherlands)

In these studies, Dr. Etela handled the nutritional component as research fellow with the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI-West Africa) based in Ibadan, Nigeria. These studies complemented agronomic and socio-economic studies of a nationally coordinated collaborative smallholder agricultural research amongst scientists from selected universities, national agricultural research systems, and Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) centres such as International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), all in Nigeria. Two out of the three sweet potato varieties (TIS-87/0087 and TIS-8164) have since been released to farmers in Nigeria.

In community service, Dr. Etela has served as volunteer / consultant to several nongovernmental organisations targeted at capacity building for peace and reconciliation, capacity development for smallholder farmers, leadership skills and personal development for youths, women, chiefs, opinion leaders, farmers’cooperatives, and ex-militants from the 23 local government areas of Rivers State. Here in the University of Port Harcourt, he has served as Acting Head (HoD), Department of Animal Science and Fisheries (2010-2012) and is, currently, the Acting Director, Institute of Agricultural Research and Development, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Port Harcourt since September 2012 to date.

As HoD, he contributed immensely to the transformation of the Department of Animal Science and Fisheries to its present status, and as Acting Director, he has commenced a process for staff development through the nomination of six staff of the Faculty of Agriculture for a just concluded nine-week online ICfD-2013 training on the use of social media tools for agricultural and rural development funded by UNITAR/FAO/CTA. He has also facilitated the signing of Cooperation Agreement with the Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA) in The Netherlands and the signing of an initial five-year collaborative research memorandum of understanding with the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Ibadan, Nigeria by the management of the University of Port Harcourt. In November 2012, he facilitated the joining of the African Network for Agriculture, Agroforestry and Natural Resources Education (ANAFE) located in Kenya by the University of Port Harcourt. More of such collaborations and partnerships are still being worked out as a strategic plan to ensure organisational capacity development of the IARD, Faculty of Agriculture, and the University of Port Harcourt, at large.

He is an active member of several departmental, faculty-wide and university-wide committees including serving as Quality Assurance and Quality Control Officer representing the Faculty of Agriculture. Details are as contained on his curriculum vitae.

IARD Research Programmes

There are seven key research programmes in the IARD and they are:
 

1) Value addition and quality assurance

2) Climate change and food security

3) Food safety and biosecurity

4) Integrated pest management

5) Agroresource and biodiversity

6) Farmer First Outreach

7) Sustainable Energy and Resource Efficiency Technologies

Thematic Areas of Research Focus

1)  Investigation on qualitative enhancement of agricultural products to export standard.
 

2)  Research on climate change and food security.

3)  Studies on contamination of food produce in Niger Delta.

 

4)  Biorational control of pests of indigenous crops and cured fish products.

5)  Studies on hatchery propagation of two fish species (Lutjanus goreensis and Gymnarchus niloticus) of commercial value.

6)  Promoting farmer-centered interventions for effective extension and outreach from research.

 

7)  Effective utilization of green energy and development of technologies for resource use efficiency.

8)  Training and capacity building (trainings; conferences; workshops).