10 Days To Go: Stakeholders Gear Up For TETFund Research Fair

With just ten days left, the countdown to the highly anticipated Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) research fair has begun.

Set to take place from November 17th to 22nd, 2024, the event promises to be a transformative experience for stakeholders across Nigeria’s education, research, and innovation sectors.

Researchers, policymakers, academic leaders, and industry experts are preparing to converge for a week-long showcase of groundbreaking research, policy discussions, and collaborative opportunities that will shape the future of higher education and research in Nigeria and beyond.

The event will bring together academics, researchers, policymakers, government officials, and private sector leaders, offering them an opportunity to exchange ideas, build partnerships, and explore the practical applications of research.

The Executive Secretary of TETFund, Arch. Sonny Echono, earlier urged research institutes, private inventors, and digital creators to showcase their products and services at the fair.

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LEADERSHIP reports that one of the highlights of the TETFund Research fair will be the presentation of cutting-edge research across various disciplines.

Scholars from Nigerian universities and research institutions will present their findings, demonstrating the significant impact of their work on issues ranging from healthcare and agriculture to technology and social sciences.

Beyond research presentations, the fair will facilitate in-depth discussions on policy matters affecting the Nigerian education system. Policymakers will also engage with researchers to explore strategies for advancing Nigeria’s research agenda and aligning it with national development goals.

The fair will further offer a range of networking sessions where researchers, academic leaders, and industry stakeholders can interact, share ideas, and forge new collaborations.

In addition to research presentations, the fair will feature specialised workshops designed to equip participants with the skills to navigate the ever-evolving research landscape.

A key aspect of the TETFund research fair will be the exhibition of research-driven solutions that have real-world applications. This exhibition will provide a platform for showcasing technological innovations, products, and services developed through academic research.

These solutions have the potential to drive change across sectors like agriculture, healthcare, education, and infrastructure, and the fair will highlight how academic research can directly contribute to the nation’s development.

With just ten days to go, the TETFund research fair is set to become a landmark event in the country’s academic calendar.

Earlier, the organising committee of the TETFund national research fair said the five-day event will provide a platform for researchers, innovators, manufacturers, investors, venture capitalists, and policymakers to showcase their products to the market.

The Chairman of the committee, Engr. Umar Bindri, said the fair will support and promote homegrown technologies to emerge as businesses and solution providers, which will ultimately reduce dependence on foreign technologies, save foreign exchange, create jobs, and generate wealth—especially for the country’s teeming youth population.

He said the event would showcase practical research outcomes and scalable prototypes to potential investors and entrepreneurs for commercialization.

He disclosed that after the submission deadline, entries would be screened and pruned down before the commencement of the program.

On what makes this fair stand out from others, he said: “When you see a winning technology, we bring in intellectual property experts through this committee to help you. We will bring in the funders to see it and convince them to invest.”

The panel is a sub-committee of the National Research Fund Screening and Monitoring Committee (NRFS&MC) of TETFund.

The Chairman of NRFS&MC and member of the TETFund Research Fair Organizing Committee, Prof. Hayward Mafuyai, said it is looking for “low-hanging technological fruits that are ready for the market.”

Mafuyai announced that patent lawyers will be in attendance to offer expert advice and assistance to innovators on securing patents and commercializing their creations.

“Hopefully, we are looking forward to some agreements being struck. And that some of those good products that can go straight into production will be finalized. If that happens, we will be taking another step in the right direction—particularly at this time when we need all sources of revenue to be generated and jobs to be created,” he said.