President Bio Arrives Abuja to Understudy IITA’s Innovative Strategies

*This is to Boost His Feed Salone Program

 

Abubakar Hashim

 

President Julius Maada Bio arrived in Abuja, Nigeria, today, March 3, 2025.

He was received by his country’s High Commissioner, Dr Julius Sandy, with officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

He has already met his counterpart, President Bola Tinubu, at State House.

Bio’s visit is strategically significant for 2 related reasons:

1. On invitation by the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture IITA, based in Ibadan, Bio is expected to understudy its innovative strategies, resulting from successes in his Feed Salone Program, geared toward totally transforming Sierra Leone’s agricultural landscape
2. ⁠President Tinubu has already affirmed Nigeria’s commitment to support Bio’s development efforts, particularly in food security and economic growth

Sierra Leone and Nigeria share cordial historical and cultural relations. The peoples have strong interactions through trade and intermarriages, spanning over 200 years, resulting in similarities in names and cultures.

There are two examples here, among a long list showing similarities in names between Nigeria and Sierra Leone. Herbert Bankole-Bright (23 August 1883 – 14 December 1958), was a well-known political activist in Sierra Leone. Bankole is a name among Yoruba people of Nigeria.

Professor Eldred Durosimi Jones (6 January 1925 – 21 March 2020) was a Sierra Leonean academic and literary critic, known for his book Othello’s Countrymen: A Study of Africa in the Elizabethan and Jacobean Drama. He was a principal of Fourah Bay College. Jones died in Freetown, Sierra Leone, on Saturday, 21 March 2020. Durosinmi is also a Yoruba name.

* Hashim, Sierra Leone: Abubakar Hashim is the West Africa Bureau Chief, based in Sierra Leone