Faculty of Agriculture

FACULTY HOME

The establishment of the Faculty of Agriculture at the National University of Lesotho (NUL) was approved in 1977. However, the actual machinery for its creation was put in place in July 1990, with the first intake of students for undergraduate programmes taking place in August, 1991.

Over the years, the Faculty of Agriculture has pursued the mandate of producing graduates and serving as a catalyst for change. With regard to the production of graduates, the focus has been on turning out individuals who are able to:

• Effectively engage in agricultural production, research, education and extension services that yield relevant solutions to agricultural and rural development problems and improve agricultural productivity;
• Profitably put acquired knowledge and skills into operation by establishing and managing their own farms and other agro-allied enterprises that would provide employment for others;
• Undertake postgraduate training anywhere in the world to be better equipped to serve national and international agricultural needs.

The catalytic mandate underscores the role of the Faculty as an effective instrument for the implementation of policies of the government in all areas of agriculture, consumer sciences and other facets of the economy, thus contributing effectively towards overall national development. This mandate has been fulfilled through teaching, research, community engagement and consultancy service provision, and through staff involvement in the activities of various government organs and institutions in line with the National Strategic Development Plan (2012/13 ‚ 2016/17) and other relevant policies and provisions.

Vision

To effectively engage in agricultural production, research, education and extension services that would provide relevant and appropriate solutions to agricultural and development problems and improve agricultural productivity and better nutrition in the nation and beyond.

Mission

To engage in high quality teaching, agribusiness and research by developing a curriculum which lays strong emphasis on agricultural production, coupled with agribusiness and management.

General Information

The Faculty of Agriculture, hereafter referred to as the Faculty, is made up of four departments:

1. Department of Agricultural Economics and Extension
2. Department of Animal Science
3. Department of Crop Science
4. Department of Soil Science and Resource Conservation.

The Faculty offers courses for study leading to award of Diploma in specialized areas, undergraduate degrees in various disciplines in agriculture and in consumer sciences and postgraduate degrees (MSc and PhD) in various fields of agriculture.

PHILOSOPHY

The curriculum lays strong emphasis on agricultural production, coupled with agribusiness and management.  It is so designed that a wide spectrum of courses is studied to provide a broad background of in-depth theoretical knowledge and practical skills necessary for a sound understanding of general agricultural practices, consumer sciences and specialized areas in agriculture.

The training programme is, thus, broad-based, practical, functional and sufficiently flexible to make it relevant to the needs of Lesotho and the wider environment not only in the core agricultural and home management sectors, but also in other sectors of the economy.

OBJECTIVES

The objectives of the Faculty are as follows:

Production of graduates at degree and sub-degree levels who should be able to accomplish the following:

• Effectively engage in agricultural production, research, education and extension services that provide relevant and appropriate solutions to agricultural and development problems and improve agricultural productivity and better nutrition in the country and beyond.
• Profitably put their acquired knowledge and skills into operation by establishing and managing their own farms, home management-based businesses and other agro-allied enterprises, thereby becoming self-employing, as well as generating employment for other people.
• Undertake graduate and postgraduate training in their chosen fields of agriculture and consumer sciences anywhere in the world, so as to be better equipped to serve national as well as international needs in these areas of specialization.
• Localisation of training at various degree levels, thereby conserving badly needed foreign exchange hitherto expended on overseas training.
• Serving as an effective instrument for the implementation of government policies in all areas of agriculture, food security and human nutrition, including other facets of the economy, thereby contributing effectively towards overall national development.