In its sustained bid to fully discharge its three-pronged mandate of
teaching, research and community service, the University of Ilorin will
soon establish an oil palm plantation covering 1,000 hectares of land.
The Vice-Chancellor, Prof. AbdulGaniyu Ambali, who disclosed this
while addressing the 239th meeting of the Senate of the University last
Wednesday (April 30, 2014), put the cost of the proposed plantation at
N1.2 billion.
Prof. Ambali said that the project would be flagged off on Thursday,
May 15, 2014 by the Coordinating Minister of the Economy and Finance
Minister,
Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, in conjunction with the Ministers of
Education and Agriculture, Barrister Nyesom Wike and Dr A. Adeshina
respectively.
The Vice-Chancellor explained that the proposed Plantation would
provide training and laboratory facilities for students in the Faculties
of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences as well as the Departments
of Forestry, Plant Biology and other related disciplines.
He added that
at maturation, the plantation would also be a good source of internally
generated revenue for the University.
Prof. Ambali disclosed further that clearing of the site would commence in earnest ahead of the May 15 flag-off date.
Already, a renowned Professor of Agriculture, Job Olutimehin Atteh,
has been appointed to head a Committee that would midwife the project.
In a chat with Unilorin Bulletin, the Chairman of the Oil Palm
Plantation Committee, Prof. Atteh said that the project would be
“a
highly profitable venture”, disclosing that “we will kick off with 10
hectares in the first instance.”
Prof. Atteh disclosed that land clearing had already commenced while
the Committee had already brought in 2,000 oil palm seedlings from the
National Institute for Oil-Palm Research (NIFOR), Benin City, Edo State.
The Committee Chairman said, “We have the tenera variety, which has a
high oil content in the fruit and it is expected to start fruiting in
two to three years.”
On the revenue prospect from the venture, Prof. Atteh said that at
maturation, the University would reap 10 tonnes of fresh fruits from
each planted hectare, declaring, “We expect to get 4,000 kilogramme of
palm oil, 500 kilogramme of palm kernel oil and 600 kilogramme of palm
kernel cake.”
Explaining further, Prof. Atteh said, “At an estimated price of N240
per kilogramme, we will be making N960,000 per hectare from palm oil;
N175,000 per hectare from palm kernel oil, at N350 per kilogramme and
N4,800 from palm kernel cake at N8.00 per kilogramme”.
He added that “at
the peak of production, the revenue will be about N1. 2 billion per
annum from the 1000 hectares.”
The University of Ilorin is endowed with a vast expanse of land,
which successive administrations have been putting into profitable use
with the cultivation of several economic trees.
For instance, the University already has about 650 hectares of Teak
Plantation, about 46 hectares of Jatropha Plantation, about 28 hectares
of Date-palm Plantation, and about one hectare of Moringa Plantation,
all of which are expected to substantially contribute to the
institution’s revenue generation drive.
