By Hillary Asemota
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), Regional Director, for West Africa, Dr. Dimitri Sanga, has commended the Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation (STI), Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, on his STI drive for the attainment of a knowledge-based economy for the development of Nigeria.
Sanga, who was represented by the National Professional Officer, Science, in the global agency, Dr. Enang Moma, made the disclosure at an all-embracing stakeholder meeting on the Validation Workshop on the 2022 Draft National STI Policy in Abuja.
While admitting that UNESCO has built capacity for ministry officials toward the implementation and actualization of the national STI policy, he reiterated that UNESCO is willing to render more technical assistance to Federal Government through the Ministry for the robust actualization of the STI as driver of Nigeria’s economic development.
He said: “UNESCO pledged strong support for the ministry, through commissioning of Prof. Willie Sanyibola, a consultant to work with federal government’s team on the revised policy in an open and transparent manner to drive the revised STI document, adding that he is well abreast with STI developments in Nigeria.
However, he advised that Nigeria must deploy emerging technologies for the growth of all sectors of the economy to facilitate development.
The UNESCO Director, expressed acknowledgment that with the revised document, Nigeria now has an STI policy and template that other African and West African countries are currently using to domesticate and review their STI policy.
Sanga, emphasized that STI has to be open for it to drive development and regretted that one of the reasons why researches in Nigeria and West Africa are stuck in shelves is because Science is not open.
Again, he said: “Science must be expressly communicated for people and stakeholders to understand so that it can be backed up, adding that the sector has to be well funded not just from the regular budget of government, stressing that capacity has to be developed for the funds to be accessed.
“Science must be gender balanced and mainstreaming gender to achieve result in the STI policy.”
While also showering accolade on the Minister for proactively driving the ministry and carrying every stakeholder on the path of Nigeria’s technological trajectory, the representative of the Nigerian Academy of Education (NAE), Prof. Rosemary Udeozor, said the meeting for the validation of the STI policy has greater implication for Nigeria and Africa.
She said the Academy recognizes that Nigeria as a nation has a lot of talents as far as STI is concerned, stressing that there is need for stakeholders to synergise with the Minister to fast track the speedy development of Nigeria scientifically and developmentally and through innovations.
Udeozor, said: “The NAE is all willing to partake in the programmes and projects of this ministry.
“I want to remind us of what we know already that a lot of policies have been put in place through the years but peculiar situations have hampered the speedy take-off of the policy contents, which is its weakness in implementation.
“The NAE is assuring the Minister in whatever capacity to collaborate in the STI drive, we will throw in our weight and as researchers and scholars and teacher and we know that every policy finds its final journey to the classroom and without classroom involvement the policy will not take root.”
She explained that STI, is all about knowledge acquisition, knowledge transfer, impartation and delivery because the youths and adults are involved, stressing that the NAE has the requisite and competent manpower that will assist the ministry in getting result.
Dr. Umar Bindir, the former DG of NOTAP, in a remark commended the Minister for his purposeful leadership in recognizing that STI is the way to Nigeria’s economic emancipation and development, stressing that the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN) also recognizes that Nigeria cannot develop without STI.
According to him, Nigeria has capacity engines of more than 200 Universities and 200 Research institutes and therefore cannot dwell in poverty.