National Agricultural Seeds Council (NASC) has commenced training of Licensed Seed Inspectors (LSI) on enforcement of the use of quality cassava seed toward enhancing food security in Nigeria.
A Director in NASC, Dr Ishiak Khalid, stated this in Ibadan on Thursday at the opening of a two-day training by the council, in collaboration with International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA).
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the workshop had as its theme: “Building an Economically Sustainable Integrated Cassava Seed (BASICS-ll) for Cassava Licensed Seed Inspectors.”
Khalid, who was represented by the South-West Regional Coordinator, NASC, Dr Adekunle Adeseko, said the council had set the pace in cassava seed certification in West Africa.
He stated that it had been improving its efficiency through the adoption of seed tracker in digital certification, especially in cassava.
Khalid, however, charged the LSIs to be up and doing in ensuring compliance with seed quality, noting that the council had been abreast of the activities of informal seed entrepreneurs.
On the challenges confronting cassava certification in south-west zone and the way forward, Khalid decried low patronage on seed tracker by new seed entrepreneurs.
“We know that in the South, NASC is in the process of integrating the newly-licensed cassava growers and processors, as they are yet to fully grasp the need to register their cassava seed field on the seed tracker for quality assurance.
“Another challenge is the sourcing of cassava seed from informal seed sector,” he said.
He noted that awareness creation was a way out of the challenges.
According to him, the council has paucity of funds to upscale the level of awareness on the need to propagate cassava, using seeds instead of stem from old plants meant for root production.
Khalid commended the collaboration with Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which, he said, had been supporting the realisation of the council’s objectives.
The Desk Officer Basics-ll, NASC, Dr Bankole Osho-Lagunju, identified decentralisation of seed quality assurance as a new paradigm that NASC was looking at due to shortage of manpower for the number of seed producers in the country.
“Having trained personnel like this will complement the NASC officers, bring quality assurance closer to the people, make it more responsive and create income for those engaged,” he said.
In his goodwill message, Dr Shuaeeb Oyewole, Zonal Coordinator, Nigerian Stored Products Research Institute (NSPRI), Ibadan zonal office, stressed the need for planting high yield seeds that
Source: News Agency of Nigeria
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Country: Nigeria
Date: 28-Oct-23
Source: News Agency of Nigeria
Institute trains Nigerian, Ghanaian lawyers handling cases involving capital offences
The Makwanyane Institute Nigeria Network has offered refresher training to 20 legal practitioners on rendering quality legal services to suspects of capital offences.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the three-day train-the-trainers workshop held on Friday in Abuja was organised for criminal defense lawyers selected from Nigeria and Ghana.
It had “Defending Persons Facing the Death Penalty” as its tag and was organised in collaboration with Hope Behind Bars Africa and Centre for Legal Support and Inmate Rehabilitation (CELSIR).
Other partners included Inclusion Project and Cornell Center on the Death Penalty Worldwide.
Mrs Oluwafunke Adeoye, Founder, Hope Behind Bars Africa, said the workshop was aimed at training lawyers to effectively represent their clients facing capital punishments.
According to her, capital punishments such as the death penalty, require special skills and knowledge on the part of the legal practitioners.
“When people, who have been charged for these offences cannot afford adequate legal representation, it becomes a big problem.
“That is why we organised this workshop to enhance the expertise of the legal practitioners to handle cases effectively,” she said.
Mr Mohammed Kassim, Senior Partner, Obour, Minta and Co., Accra and a facilitator at the workshop, said that defending persons on death row is not an easy task hence the need for continuous training on relevant skills.
Kassim, who took the participants on “Strategic Litigation on Death Penalty, Investigation and Evidence Gathering Techniques”, said that lawyers representing clients facing capital punishments must be encouraged, supported and trained effectively at all times.
Also, Mrs Aladesanmi Olamiposi, Founder and Executive Director, CELSIR, urged the participants to maintain their professional ethics when representing their clients.
“Explore all possible and ethical means to extract testimony from witnesses when establishing your case in spite of many hostilities you may face.
“As a human rights lawyer, it behoves on you to maintain composure. You must stay calm.
“You must be professional and respectful even when faced with hostile or uncooperative witnesses; you must avoid arguments or confrontations,” she said.
Source: News Agency of Nigeria