He made the declaration on Wednesday in FUNAAB during a presentation titled “AMREC Work Ethics: Building a Strong Foundation for Success.”

The professor highlighted the central role of discipline, integrity, and accountability among staff of the Agricultural Media Resources and Extension Centre, AMREC, the university’s outreach arm to farming communities.

According to him, work ethic goes beyond technical competence.

He described it as “the internal compass that determines how individuals behave even when supervision is absent.”

He noted that institutions driven by strong ethical values were more productive, innovative, and better positioned to deliver impactful solutions.

Ikeobi emphasised that ethical conduct is particularly crucial in agricultural research and extension services, where inaccurate data or delayed information could result in significant crop losses for farmers.

He warned that AMREC’s credibility—and by extension that of FUNAAB—depended heavily on the professionalism of its workforce.

“As the bridge between research and rural farmers, AMREC must prioritise reliability and timeliness. A delay in communicating pest control measures or climate information can have devastating consequences,” he said.

The former university administrator identified key challenges facing AMREC staff, including limited resources, difficult terrain, and tight production schedules, noting that only a workforce grounded in strong ethics could effectively navigate the constraints.

He outlined core values expected of staff, including punctuality, honesty, teamwork, professionalism, and continuous learning.

He stressed that employees must take ownership of their responsibilities, avoid complacency, and remain proactive in solving problems without constant supervision.

Ikeobi also warned against what he described as “toxic competence,” where highly skilled workers lack discipline or integrity, noting that such individuals could damage team morale and institutional reputation.

On performance standards, he underscored the importance of attendance, loyalty, trustworthiness, initiative, and effective communication, adding that attitude often determines the level of success an individual or organisation can attain.

“Attitude determines altitude,” he stated, urging workers to embrace positive mindsets even in challenging environments.

To strengthen institutional efficiency, the professor recommended a shift from rigid supervision to a coaching-based management style, advocating for clear goal-setting, staff development, and regular feedback mechanisms.

He also called for fairness in enforcing rules, warning that selective discipline could erode trust within the organisation.

He further advised leadership to motivate staff through recognition, provision of adequate tools, and clear communication of organisational goals, noting that employees perform better when they understood the impact of their work on farmers’ livelihoods.

Ikeobi concluded that AMREC’s success — and its ability to transform Nigeria’s agricultural landscape — depended less on funding and more on the ethical commitment of its workforce.

“The soil of success is work ethic,” he declared, urging staff to see themselves not as routine civil servants, but as critical partners in national development, particularly in supporting farmers across Ogun State and beyond.

Speaking earlier at the event, AMREC Director, Prof Olalekan Jacob Olaoye said the centre, uniquely positioned at the interface of research, communication, and community engagement, bore the mandate of  knowledge into practical solutions that address real-world agricultural challenges.

These challenges, Olaoye stated, ranged from climate variability and food insecurity to post-harvest losses and the urgent need for sustainable fisheries and aquaculture development, require a responsive, innovative, and knowledge-driven extension system.

According to him, the strength of any extension system lies in its capacity to adapt, innovate, and deliver measurable impact.

Consequently he said, “we must move beyond conventional approaches and embrace modern extension paradigms, including digital extension services, participatory methodologies, and value chain-driven interventions.”

The training session also had two other eminent professors in the Centre, the Deputy Director, Prof Ọlálékan  Oyekunle, and Prof Oluwakemi Irhekore deliver papers of interest on various topics.

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The post FUNAAB don tasks AMREC on work ethics for agric transformation appeared first on Frontpageng.

At its inception 37 years ago in January 1988, the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB), being one of the specialized universities of agriculture in Nigeria, was saddled with a tripartite mandate – Teaching, Research and Extension Services.

The Agricultural Media Resources and Extension Centre (AMREC) is the leg upon which the extension mandate rests which in essence is about deepening community engagements.

Overtime, and especially under the incumbent Administration of the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Olusola Babatunde Kehinde, AMREC has been living up to its billing as extensionist, reaching out with proven solutions to farmers, food processors, industries and other stakeholders across the South Western States of Nigeria.

In concrete terms, FUNAAB is currently doing so much in the area of manpower development through teaching and training as well as research, particularly problem-directed and result-oriented researches, leading to several collaborations with other stakeholders.

As an arm of the University, AMREC which is under the leadership of its Director, Prof. Prof. Olalekan Jacob Olaoye, a Professor of Fisheries Extension and Production Management, is among centres and departments under the supervision of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Development, Prof. Kolawole Adebayo.

From its day to day operations, AMREC deploys strategies involving training, demonstrations, adaptive research and communication to help farmers and other stakeholders in agriculture form opinions and adopt new knowledge and technologies that will enhance agricultural productivity and ultimately improve their livelihoods.

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In furtherance of its several tasks, the Centre’s approach to extension activities involves the adoption of model extension villages within its catchment areas in the southwest and the use of an inter-disciplinary extension system in agricultural transfer.

AMREC operates a structure comprising five Operating Programmes which are Extension and Adaptive Research (EAR), Gender Issues and Youth Development (GIYD), Media and Farm Broadcast (MFB); Planning, Monitoring, Evaluation and ICT (PME-ICT), and Training and Farm Demonstration (TFD).

Last Thursday, March 20, 2025, AMREC literarily brought a large assemblage of tomato farmers to the classroom, courtesy of a training programme organized in collaboration with the Institutional-Based Research Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) on participatory assessment of Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) on growth and yield of Tomato.

The training, themed “Result Dissemination and Post-Training on Good Agricultural Practices for Tomato Farmers,” was aimed at enhancing sustainable farming techniques, boosting productivity, and improving crop quality while minimising environmental impact.

Three facilitators took the farmers on some practical hands-on skills in farm practices geared at boosting their agricultural outputs.

Dr. Olatunbosun Soetan highlighted findings from a study on GAPs and called for increased awareness and training of tomato farmers for sustainable production and the need to scale up the project for commercial farming in Nigeria.

Another facilitator, Dr. James Fadeyi, focused on Integrated Pest Management (IPM) strategies to mitigate crop losses, noting that farmers must have basic knowledge on key pests, diseases and weeds.

For his part, Dr. Olanrewaju Oni who discussed the impact of biostimulants and fertilizer types on okra growth and yield, offered insights applicable to tomato farming.

FUNAAB’S Director in the Directorate of Research, Innovations, and Partnerships (DRIP), Prof. Mutiu Busari, who was present at the event, underscored the role of technology in modern agriculture, noting that mobile applications could assist farmers in assessing soil fertility and determining suitable fertilizer types.

*Arowojolu is Deputy Director, Media and Information at FUNAAB

The post FUNAAB: AMREC impacting more farmers, fulfilling mission   appeared first on Frontpageng.