THERE IS A NEED FOR COMMUNITIES TO RECOGNISE THE VALUE OF FISH RESOURCES, PUT MEASURES IN PLACE FOR THEIR SUSTANABILITY –PROF. EMMANUEL AJANI

Ifeoluwa Ekpeti

Emmanuel Kolawole Ajani, Professor of Coastal and Inland Wetlands Fisheries Management, Faculty of Renewable Resources, made this assertion during his inaugural lecture held recently at the Lake Side Lecture Theatre.

While speaking on his inaugural topic titled Engaging the Fish: Elixir For Nigeria’s Self Sufficiency in Fish Production, he expounded that Fisheries resources are sources of wealth, health, food and nutrition especially to the communities in which these resources are located. However, there is the need for the communities to recognize their value and put measures in place for their sustainable management and utilization.

Professor Emmanuel Ajani elaborated on the fact that in tackling the issues of self- sufficiency, food insecurity and national income enhancement through fish production, there is the need for engagement of the fishes through proper understanding of the biological mechanisms linking environmental variability to fish production systems, which can only be done by disentangling the interactions between the habitat and environmental adaptation

In like manner, the professor foregrounded that the lack of proper management direction of Nigeria’s fisheries resources has led to serious resources depletion due to the effects of over fishing, degradation of aquatic environment and also population growth.

He stressed that many human activities including mining, sewage discharge, as well as overuse of chemicals have negative impacts on several biological processes which would no doubt continue to affect the functioning of highly productive coastal ecosystem.

While speaking, he also emphasized that in order to ensure the needed transformation of the aquaculture sector, assistance to Nigeria’s aquaculture sector should be renewed in ways that are long term in nature and would also favor private investment, adding that radical and result based initiatives are to be put in place to encourage more investments in aquaculture in order to ensure the sustainable growth of this venture.

Ultimately, he accentuated the need for government at all levels to significantly improve on and redress the focus of funding support to Nigerian Universities, towards enhancing their capacities to carry out innovative researches needed to promote the growth of industries and local economy, adding that support should also be provided for the development of “aquapreneurship” innovation incubation centers that are tailored to the specific national economic development goals.

Prof. Ajani also recommended that the Department of Aquaculture and Fisheries Management of the university should further be strengthened to achieve her core mandate of skilled manpower development as the huge skilled manpower gaps in the country should be addressed by all stakeholders.