Dr. Joe Atungwu (Left) addressing prospective students of this Session’s FPY Programme during their Orientation at the COLANIM Auditorium.
The Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Development, Professor Felix Salako, had admonished students embarking on the Farm Practical Year (FPY) programme to take advantage of the Scheme, harness the practical skills and be good ambassadors of the University, in their respective communities of posting.
Professor Salako gave the charge during the FPY Orientation Programme, organized by the Centre for Community-Based Farming Scheme (COBFAS).
The Deputy Vice-Chancellor, who likened the farming scheme to the National Youth Service, said the programme is expected to span a duration of one year, in line with the recent directive of the Federal Government for Agricultural Science students.
Professor Salako, however, disclosed that UNAAB was a step ahead of the directive as the University had previously engaged its students on a six-month Farm Practical programme, in four off-campus locations across Ogun State.
Imploring the students to be of good character and obey rules and regulations of their host communities, Professor Salako, urged them to plough back into the communities what they had learnt from the University.
According to him, more students from the host communities had applied for admission into UNAAB as a result of the influence the past FPY students had on them.
He further added that the one year programme had been structured to pave way for the development of entrepreneurial skills in the students and thus empower them to be job-creators upon graduation.
Speaking earlier, the new Director of COBFAS, Dr. Joe Atungwu, emphasized the importance of the FPY programme as a prerequisite for graduation, by Agricultural Science students of the University.
According to Dr. Atungwu, the programme is a 36-unit course and students would have to perform exceedingly well in it, to boost their Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA).
The programme currently operates from four locations at Odogbolu, Ode-Lemo, Ishaga-Orile and Iwoye-Ketu, all in Ogun State.