By Stanley Iwuoha
The Federal government yesterday charged staff and management of the National Board for Technology Incubation, NBTI to go into research and come up with a lasting solution to the perennial insecurity challenges bedevelilng the country.
The Permanent Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Innovation, Science and Technology, Mrs. Esuabana Nko-Asanye gave the charge at the four-day retreat for Directors and Centre Managers of the NBTI holding in Keffi, Nasarawa State.
The PS, who represented the Minister, Chief Uche Nnaji at the occasion, said
insecurity remained the greatest challenge facing the country today, disrupting socio-economic activities, including farming and urged NBTI researchers to deploy their expertise towards finding a.lasting solution to the security problem.
And for Nigeria to overcome the security challenges, he insisted that NBTI reposition itself and drive the commercialization of research, development and innovation in the sector in line with global mix of humanity.
She encouraged NBTI to show more commitment to enable it attain the dreams of the forebears.
“The world is going through tremendous challenges, industrial, social cultural economic technological amongst others that are all embedded in innovation which impacts you to be in the place as forerunners to facilitate the structural development of effective and efficient competitiveness in creating sustainable startups and entrepreneur skills for women and youths in our great nation.
“Climate change, is one of the greatest challenges for advancing us from having enough food for national nutrition value chain in Agricultural sector. Governance issue is a global problem, now some of them are even threatening us with nuclear warfare, it is true that we can make Nigeria a safe place.
“Insecurity is part of our greatest challenges. So, this is a prime sector that this gathering should try to research and see what we can do, to averse the issue of insecurity. It is a very big challenge for our nation, people can’t go to the farm because of insecurity. This is the dream of our Minister Chief Uche Geoffrey Nnaji.”
“NBTI should be ready to drive the commercialization of research, development and innovation in line with global mix of humanity as we are facing challenges in our existential endeavors everyday.
“The renewed Hope of President Tinubu is one of those greatest things that has taken us back again, where we have Hope Nigeria about 31 years ago. That hope has come, and we are the ones to drive the hope,” he added.
Earlier in her welcome address, the Director General of NBTI, Dr. Patricia Chukwu said “NBTI is poised to providing crucial support and resources to emerging entrepreneurs and innovators across the nation, in line with the objectives of Mr. President’s Renewed Hope Agenda,
“Through our Technology Incubation Programme (TIP), capacity-building initiatives, and strategic partnerships, we aim to create a nurturing environment where innovation can flourish and succeed.
“As we strive together to achieve our common goal of an innovation-led Nigeria that aligns with the Renewed Hope Agenda of our President,
The Technology Incubation Programme (TIP) is a comprehensive initiative supported by government, academia, and the private sector.
” Its primary aim is to nurture the growth of knowledge-based emerging entrepreneurs in the domain of new technology-driven enterprises, encompassing start-ups and nascent ventures.
“It further, endeavors to foster the cultivation of indigenous talents and industries”, the DG said.
The four day retreat themed: Renewed Hope: Empowering NBTI Leadership for Technological Advancement and Economic Transformation will culminate on Saturday is a forum for all participant to deliberate on how to reposition the psychology of commercialization of technologies and technical innovations in Nigeria.
