Vice President Kashim Shettima says world leaders must always remember that cooperation is the compass and the most feasible road to exploiting potential and overcoming current global difficulties.
Shettima stated this during his address to world leaders at the G77+China Leaders’ Summit, which is now taking place at the Palace Convention in Havana, Cuba.
Speaking to a gathering of Heads of State and Government, the UN Secretary-General, Antonio Gutteres, and delegates from more than 100 countries from the global South, the Vice President emphasized the importance of staying focused and leveraging cooperation or partnership to find realistic solutions to global challenges.
He said “We must not allow geo-political tensions in any corner of the world to deter us from forging a collective and mutually advantageous path forward – a roadmap of shared prosperity and progress.”
The Vice President expressed Nigeria’s commitment to tow the path of partnership with member states of the G77+China towards addressing global challenges.
Speaking to the theme: “Current Development Challenges: The Role of Science, Technology and Innovation” the Vice President underscored the prominent role that science, technology, and innovation have always played in resolving challenges from the past to the present.
Vice President Shettima noted in his speech, “From Pandemic to Paradigm Shift: Nigeria’s Road to Reinvention,” that “science and technology have shaped the course of nations throughout history.”
“The phases of the Industrial Revolution, from the first to the fourth, and from mechanization to automation, have determined the prosperity of those nations.”
Furthermore, he observed that “it is crucial to acknowledge that the developing world found itself at a disadvantage in the earliest phases of these transformations, struggling to compete fairly as these revolutions swept across the globe.”
The Vice President informed his audience that Nigeria is doing its part to solve problems like Covid-19 and the climate catastrophe by harnessing science, technology, and innovation.
Nigeria, he continued, “understands that the key to advancing innovation in science and technology lies in fostering a vibrant knowledge economy and facilitating the unrestricted exchange of ideas.”
This the Vice President said; “is the reason “across the globe, one would be hard-pressed to identify a premier institution, even within the most developed nations, where a Nigerian, trained at home, is not contributing significantly, whether as a tech innovator or a medical specialist, in the noble pursuit of improving the human condition.”
The Vice President commented on the Nigerian government’s efforts to tackle Covid-19 in Nigeria using science and technology, saying that “the Covid-19 pandemic, while a tragic chapter, served as a catalyst for our brilliant minds in Nigeria to rejuvenate their pursuits in the fields of science and technology.”
“Our scientists have successfully positioned our nation as a prominent global hub for mRNA vaccine production, a milestone currently in progress.”
Vice President Shettima who lauded the contributions of the youth in the nation’s quest for science, tech, and innovation advancement emphasized that “Nigeria’s demographic advantage is not limited to the absence of an aging population. Nigeria stands as a beacon of youthful talent and innovation.”
Speaking on the climate crisis, VP Shettima said that crisis around the globe too has dominated our agenda, prompting our youthful innovators to engage in crafting solutions.
The Vice President while stressing the imperative of global partnership, warned that “the stakes are high. If we fail to act now, the prevailing trend could imperil our attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).”
The UN Secretary-General, Antonio Gutteres in his brief remarks also noted the development problems confronting developing countries.
He promised the UN system would continue to work with the G77 and China to proffer solutions to these challenges.
Credit: TVC News.
