Welcome Address/Introduction of HoD of the Department

Dr. Olumuyiwa Ayodeji AKANMU

Coordinator

The essence of running the undergraduate (B. Fisheries and Aquaculture) and post graduate (PGD, MFA, M.Sc., and Ph.D.) programmes in fisheries and aquaculture is to develop graduates with all round knowledge in theory and practice in the arts and science of ordering and managing aquatic resources for sustainable productivity and uses based on the detailed understanding and analysis of global and societal needs, goals and objectives. These are within the socio-economic and physical environmental frameworks. These graduates will be exposed to the rudiments of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources management to meet our societal changing needs. 

The Bachelor of Fisheries and Aquaculture Programme is conceived to produce graduates to serve as middle level officers. The programme is developed to encourage intellectual growth with relevant practical and professional competence required for scientific resolution of social, economics, biological and environmental issues relating to aquatic and associated resources in this contemporary time with the aim of ensuring optimum sustainability management and productivity of the resources

Location of the Department

The Department is one of the departments in the Faculty of Renewable Natural Resources Management, in the College of Agriculture which is located in Ejigbo town of Osun State. Ejigbo, is situated along the border between Oyo and Osun States. The Department is in the Faculty of Renewable Natural Resources Management building.

Brief History of the Department

The Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Management started as a unit that offer degree in Fisheries and Aquaculture as a programme in the Department of Animal Science and Fisheries at inception. In 2011, the Department of Fisheries and Wildlife management was created to offer two programmes respectively viz: Fisheries and Aquaculture and Wildlife Management programmes. In 2019, the Faculty of Renewable Natural Resources Management was created with three Departments under it and the Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Management was one of them.

The first set of students were admitted on the 8th October, 2007 and graduated with Bachelor of Fisheries and Aquaculture on 27th June, 2012. The Department has since, been producing highly qualified graduates who are employed in different relevant works of life, while some are on further studies. The Department offers programme leading to the award of Bachelor’s degree in Fisheries and Aquaculture, as well as post graduate programmes (M.Sc. and Ph.D.) in the different areas of specialisation of Fisheries and Aquaculture. The Department has so far graduated two (2) different sets of M.Sc. Fisheries and Aquatic Resource Management students, while the Ph.D. candidates are still running their programme.  

The Department has been a leading element in advancing frontiers in research and knowledge within Nigeria. For the past few years, the members of the academic staff in the Department have won several grants from reputable organizations which include the institutional based research (IBR), Tet-Fund and National Research Fund (NRF) grants. 

The Department has cordial relationship with Fisheries Society of Nigeria (FISON), Association of Nigerian Scientists (ANIFS), World Aquaculture Society (WAS), West African Region of World Aquaculture Society African Chapter, Association of Organic Agriculture Practitioners of

Nigeria (NOAN), and National Knowledge Centre for Organic Agriculture in Africa (KCOA).      

The Department is endowed with sophisticated equipment in fish processing, fish breeding, nutrition and production, water quality monitoring test kits, earthen ponds, concrete tanks and other fish holding receptacles’ design, construction and management, fish hatchery design and construction, production of insects such as maggots, grasshoppers, black soldier fly larvae etc. to feed fish, aquaria design and production, ornamental fish culture and production, integrated fish production.      

The students registered in the Department offer same courses at the 100 level as their counterparts in basic sciences, at 200 level they offer same courses with related Departments within the College, while in 300 level, they concentrate on courses relevant to Fisheries and Aquatic Resources management. At 400 level, students take in situ practical year courses under the Student Work Experience Programmes during the Harmattan Semester after which they proceed on a six-month Student Industrial Work Experience Scheme (SIWES) ex situ in relevant agencies and establishment during the Rain Semester as part of their graduation requirement. 

The Department operates academic curricular that are tailored along the stipulations contained in the National Universities Commission (NUC) Benchmark for Minimum Academic Standards. The academic programmes in fisheries and aquatic resources management, are being run to produce graduates to serve as middle (graduates) and upper (postgraduates) level officers. The programme is developed to encourage intellectual growth with relevant practical and professional competence required for scientific resolution of social, economics, biological and environmental issues relating to aquatic and associated resources in this contemporary time with the aim of ensuring optimum sustainability management and productivity of the resources.

The Department therefore aims at:

• Producing skilled middle and upper level officers who could engage in fisheries and aquaculture activities, provide the needed manpower and create employment opportunities.
• Provides opportunities for the interested candidates to develop effective skill and career to encourage better contributions and advance cutting edge of knowledge in aquaculture and fisheries management.
• Enable the upcoming generations of renewable natural resources scientists to acquire training in critical and objective analysis of issues with balanced judgments which will give them a good standing in research, culture and the management of fisheries, aquatic and associated resources

Mission of the Department

Our mission is to create a unique academic centre of excellence providing high quality teaching and learning experiences in Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Management that will engender the production of entrepreneurial graduates in this discipline, capable of impacting positively on their environment while being globally competitive. The programmes aim at development of creative, innovative and self-reliant human resources in form of graduates with entrepreneurial culture, good communication skills, computer literacy and problem-solving abilities who will transform the society for the better. 

Vision of the Department

To be an exemplary Department of excellence in providing high quality teaching, learning and research experience in the areas of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Management that will lead to the production of scholars, researchers and professionals in academics, capable of having impact on their environment while being globally competitive.

Academic Programme

1. Fisheries and Aquaculture
2. M.Sc. Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Management Options in: Fisheries Management    Aquaculture
3. Ph.D. Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Management Options in:  Fisheries Management    Aquaculture

Physical Development

The Directorate of works and physical development continues to supervise the on-going physical development projects which include approach road construction, health centre, classroom complex, ICT centre, library building, laboratories complex, sports arena and facilities and farm structures. A feed mill factory, standard fisheries and aquaculture complex. 

There are three functional laboratories in the College that serve the academic programmes of the Department. The laboratories are well equipped to cope with the teaching of students and for the use by the academic staff for research purposes. Well-equipped class rooms and lecture rooms are also available for the smooth running of academic programmes in the department, faculty and the college as a whole.

The desire to create a model department of fisheries and aquatic resources management in the college of agriculture is the driving tempo for the physical development in the department, faculty and the college. 

Research Activities

Basic and applied research in fisheries management, aquaculture, fish processing, water quality, etc. are being embarked by the members of academic staff in the department. Areas of research coverage include: fish nutrition, fish ecology, toxicology and water pollution, fish preservation and value addition, aquaria design and construction, ornamental fish production, ornamental fish feed production, mono and poly culture fish production, food and feeding habits of different freshwater fish species, acute toxicity of extracts from some of the fish feed plant ingredients or other chemical materials which are always being used for agricultural production. The members of staff in the department are in collaboration with various departments from different Universities in Nigeria and outside Nigeria.

The TetFund-NRF research grant won by a team in the department is titled “Nutrition and health implications of processed insects as protein supplements in the diets of Clarias gariepinus and Heterobranchus bidorsalis.” This study considers the use of different processed insects as replacement of fish meal in the diets of the named fish species. The study aims at investigating the possibility of replacing fish meal with black soldier fly larvae (BSFL) or grasshopper, and examine the growth effect and the health implication of these processed insects on the fish species being fed with them. The potential tendencies of these processed insects as cheaper animal protein sources over the expensive fishmeal would also be investigated. However, this study is still ongoing.  

Journals:

• Nigeria Journals of Fisheries
• Field guide to Nigeria freshwater fishes
• Journal of agriculture, forestry and fisheries
• Journal of aquatic sciences
• Journal of forestry, environment and sustainable development
• Fish and human health
• Fisheries and fish toxicology
• Fish production and management manual
• Freshwater Aquaculture
• Deep water fisheries of the North Atlantic Oceanic slope
• Proceedings of the 30^th FISON conference Delta 2015
• Sustainable integrated pond based aquaculture with rice and poultry production: economic, social and environment assessment
• Integrated fish farming: fish, rice and pig
• African Journal of fisheries
• Journal of Association of Nigerian Fisheries Scientist
• Journal of the Faculty of Renewable Natural Resources, University of Ibadan, Nigeria.
• Online Journals

Grants and Awards:

TETF/ES/DR/&D-CE-/NRF 2020/SETI/20/VOL.1 (Ipinmoroti et al.). Funded by Tertiary Education Trust Fund National Research Fund (TETFund-NRF).  

Community Empowerment Service Project:

The department engages in sensitizing the fish farmers on the better way to produce their fish, produce their fish feed and value addition to their produced fish in order to make better profit. The alternative and cheaper fish feed ingredients to use in fish production. The Fisheries Society of Nigeria (FISON), Osun State Chapter was established by the department of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Management such that the results of the research studies carried out by various researchers in this profession could be introduced and discussed with the practicing fish farmers. This has been encouraging the fish farmers. The meeting holds at the main campus of the Osun State University, Osogbo, Osun State. Through the interaction with organic societies (NOAN & KCOA) in Nigeria and abroad, the department has also been able to sensitize fish farmers on the way to produce and sell organically produced fish as a means of improving their income or profit.