FCAH&PT begins conference on smart agriculture, emerging techologies

The Federal College of Animal Health and Production Technology (FCAH&PT), Ibadan, on Monday, began a three-day conference with special focus on smart agriculture and emerging technologies.

The conference, with the theme: ”Innovating For The Future: Integrating Science, Smart Agriculture And Emerging Technologies For Sustainability And Global Prosperity,” at the college auditorium, centres on confronting climate change, food insecurity, technological disruption, and the quest for sustainable prosperity.

Declaring the conference open, Provost of the College, Dr Moshood Popoola, called on the participants to share their research interests, discuss ideas and explore opportunities for collaboration.

He told them to exchange contacts and, where possible, identify areas where they can work together, noting that a conference should not end when the presentations end. He said relationships, collaborations and ideas generated during the conference can sometimes become more valuable than the papers presented.

The provost encouraged everyone to make the most of both the academic sessions and the social engagements that have been carefully incorporated into the conference programme.

In her welcome address, Chairman, Local Organising Committee for the conference, Dr Mutiat Salawu, remarked that what makes the conference remarkable is its deliberate embrace of multidisciplinary.

She noted that the committee had received papers that cut across diverse fields, from artificial intelligence to aquaculture, from veterinary medicine to molecular sciences, from policy analysis to entrepreneurship.

She said the breadth is intentional, because no discipline can, in isolation, solve the complex problems of sustainability. “As scholars, we must resist the temptation of intellectual silos because the farmer’s field is influenced by algorithms as much as rainfall.

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“The health of livestock is inseparable from the health of humans and ecosystems. The economics of aquaculture are shaped by both molecular biology and global trade. This conference is therefore a crucible, a place where ideas from different domains can interact, challenge, and enrich one another, he said.

“As LOC chairman, I urge each participant to approach the technical sessions not as a stage for performance but as a forum for genuine dialogue. Let us ask difficult questions. Let us challenge assumptions. Let us listen across disciplines.”

The keynote speaker, Dean, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Ibadan, Professor Babasola Olugasa, while speaking with the Nigerian Tribune after the opening ceremony, commended the college for holding the conference.

Professor Olugasa stated that the theme is important, as it brings together stakeholders from colleges of animal health technologists, universities, industries, people in government and farmers to interact by engaging in innovation that means translating from research into solving problems.

He said animal production is an area that suffers neglect in developing countries. He noted that the gatherings of professionals, such as the conference being put together by the FCAH&PT, offer solutions to numerous challenges being faced as people of like minds deliberate and come up with workable ideas.