The National Coordinator, National Social Investment Programme (NSIP), Dr Umar Bindir, has called for the need to explore technology solutions to drive development in every sector of the country.
Bindir spoke at a public lecture of the 9th Convocation Ceremony of the African University of Science and Technology (AUST) in Abuja on Friday.
He said that there with the nearly 240 universities in the country, there was the need to transform scientific knowledge into a socio-economic solutions and assets.
“Nigeria has nearly 240 universities, over 600 accredited NBTE, over 100 Colleges of Education and over 300 research institutions but this has not translated into meaningful development.
“The problems we have with African setting is that we have technology not based on scientific knowledge.
”Nigeria can boast of the technology but in spite of these, there is no creativity. You still see rural houses everywhere, three to four children still going to school on a motorcycle.
”So, what this means is that we may have the knowledge but we have no standards, so we need to change our psyche to use African science to evolve,” he said.
He said that it was high time the country looked out for things that would change our lives for production while also calling on institutions to imbibe the culture of training centres to create solutions for development.
He added that the research and development centres and experimental centres, production and industrial centres also must be equipped with high skills personnel that would create and apply for solutions for development.
He, therefore, called on the country to learn from the developed nations through their performance targets, to focus on development agenda to solving our problems.
Bindir said that the developed nations were able to use technology based skills to raise their level of education through their national policies which was evidence -based on all sector.
According to him, these countries have vibrant science, technology and innovation systems, sustained research and development investment, priotised technology acquisition as well as institutional systems of innovations.
”Africa needs to understand that achieving these performance targets firmly depend on the vibrance, connectivity and efficiency of its knowledge systems.
”This is hinged on an effective science, engineering, technology and innovation eco-system which is the master key to solving our problems,” he said.
In an address of welcome, the Acting President, AUST, Prof. Azikiwe Onwualu, said that the institution had started an innovation hub, courtesy of World Bank and the African Development Bank (AFDB) to make students employers of labour.
Onwualu also said that the institutions had prepared a model for its undergraduate to either register for their professional examinations or they had done that immediately after graduation.
Meanwhile, the President, Council for the Regulation of Engineering (COREN), Ali Rabiu, commended the university’s management for diversifying into catering for the need of undergraduate studies in the institution. (NAN)
