Analysis of a Nipoferd Symposium on Palm Kernel Cake (PKC) Utilization in Animal Production: The Foundation for a PKC Research Network (PKC-Net) in Nigeria

Résumé

A 2 day symposium with the general objective of harnessing the current research information on PKC utilization in animal production for transfer to end users, in order to enhance its use in the Nigerian livestock industry and beyond was organized in south-eastern Nigeria for the members academics, students, industry regulators, farmers and Nipoferd staff from 7 to 8 December 2017. The event was organized at the Primetime Colosseum Event Place. The workshop daily proceedings were disseminated widely on Facebook, Instagram, Whatsapp and PAEPRAD blog. Twenty seven participants were invited to the symposium, but one person was unavoidably absent, while another five uninvited persons attended on their own volition. The participants were mostly males (80.6%), with academics expectedly accounting for 54.8% of them, indicating the need to attract more female academics to such scholarly events. Of the 16 researchers spoke at the event, 81.3% were from universities, while the values for polytechnic were low (12.5%). Across academic disciplines, animal scientists constituted a preponderant 18.3% of the speakers, agricultural social science and animal health participant values were low, indicating the need to specifically attract these later groups into PKC research being created in the country. The workshop was well received by the participants as shown in podcasts made by participants on the PAEPARD blog.