The Minister of Science Technology and Innovation (STI) Dr. Adeleke Mamora has expressed optimism that Nigeria’s potential in the STI, when adequately harnessed, can put the country among the top 20 economies of the world by 2030.
Dr. Mamora made this known during a critical stakeholders meeting to inaugurate the planning committee of the STI 2023 Expo in Abuja.
The 2023 Expo with the theme “Actualising Effective Diversification of the Nigerian Economy through Science, Technology and Innovation” will be held from the 16th to 20th of January 2023.
The minister noted the critical role of STI in all facets of human endeavours and its importance in the transformation of the Nigerian economy from resource -based to knowledge-based economy.
“It spans through all the Ministries, Departments and agencies such as technology science, agriculture, aviation, Industry, Energy, health, Space Education, Entrepreneurship, Military amongst others. This is the reason for this dialogue today, to discuss the way forward for Science Technology and innovation and most especially the coming event of the Ministry, the Science technology and innovation Exposition 2023,” Mamora said.
The Minister recalled that the previous editions of the STI Expo had given Presidential Awards to the best Engineers and Scientists.
“The 2022 reviewed Science Technology and innovation policy was launched during the opening ceremony of the Expo in March 2022 to enable Science Technology and innovation maximally impact on the national social economic development landscape with a view to ensuring that Nigeria actually and in reality emerges and remains among the top 20 leading economies in the world before the year 2030 and beyond,” he said.
According to the Minister, the 2023 STI Expo would be declared open by President Muhammadu Buhari and would feature award ceremony, investors and researchers’ forum, technical sessions, and special days for interested partners among others.
He lauded the contributions of partners that made the event of the last editions a success even as he tasked them to strengthen their support to make the 2023 edition even more successful.
Also speaking during the inauguration, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry Mrs Monilola Udoh, who was represented by the Director of Health, Biotechnology and Science in the ministry, Mr David Erabhahiemem, recognized the contributions of the private sector in nation building, stressing that their investment towards industrialization has been enormous.
“I particularly welcome and appreciate participants from the private sector. The government cannot do without the contribution of the private sector as seen in the developed countries. It is the private sector that utilizes the policy of the government to accelerate industrialization.
“I can assure you that the government needs the private sector and academia to fully get on board and ride on its policies and venture on demand driven research development and also to invest in viable products and services already invented or innovated,” she said.
