Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria (ARCN), Dr. Abubakar Dabban Adamu, has called for adequate and sustained funding to enhance SERVICOM-driven service delivery across the country’s agricultural research system.
Dr. Adamu made the appeal in Abuja during an advocacy visit by officials of SERVICOM to the Council. He described the engagement as timely, noting that critical SERVICOM meetings had stalled due to funding constraints.
“The meeting is timely. The SERVICOM meeting has not been held because of funding. We are coming out to demand adequate and constant funding to enable us to do what we couldn’t do before,” he said.
“SERVICOM is very key to every sector. For us to achieve 100% service delivery, we need to fund SERVICOM for maximum output.”
He reaffirmed ARCN’s commitment to deeper collaboration with SERVICOM, stressing that the platform remains essential to achieving efficiency and responsiveness in public service delivery. Adamu also took responsibility for an earlier shift in the meeting date, citing tight schedules and engagements outside the Federal Capital Territory.
The Executive Secretary expressed optimism that deliberations would lead to productive outcomes capable of strengthening service delivery within the agricultural research ecosystem.
Speaking during the visit, Director of Reform, Coordination, Service Improvement and Innovation at the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, Udoh Effik, commended ARCN for successfully hosting the previous focal officers’ meeting, described it as impactful and result-oriented.
Effik explained that government agencies report to different oversight bodies based on their operations: reforms to the Bureau of Public Service Reforms (BPSR), service delivery to SERVICOM, and innovation to the Office of the Head of Service of the Federation with quarterly reporting done through supervising ministries.
He noted that the quarterly review meeting remains an important platform for promoting best practices, assessing performance, and sharing challenges, all in line with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, especially on food security.
The director also highlighted manpower shortages across agencies, saying many are turning to SERVICOM as a channel to drive reforms and innovation since establishing new units is not feasible.
In her remarks, Kikelomo Aina, Assistant Director and Team Leader from the SERVICOM Office in the Presidency, applauded Dr. Adamu for championing the SERVICOM cause and urged ARCN to continue its support.
“We advocate for whatever will translate to excellent service delivery. ARCN is key because 16 research institutes are under the purview of the Council,” Aina said. “Every ministry and department has a SERVICOM unit. We encourage that every customer should be crowned as king.”
