DELT-Her 2.0: NASENI-PICTT Empower Female Engineers With N229m Grants

The National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) in partnership with the Presidential Implementation Committee on Technology Transfer (PICTT) has again made an unprecedented milestone to boost female engineers to exploit their potential for national development.

The NASENI-PICTT partnership took a very fundamental step in this direction when it granted the sum of N229 million to 14 awardees of the Developing Engineering Leaders Through Her (DELT-Her 2.0) initiative. This initiative was launched to build the capacity of women in engineering ecosystem.

Speaking at the awards ceremony held at the Agency’s headquarters on  Thursday 6th November 2025, the Executive Vice Chairman/Chief Executive of NASENI, Mr. Khalil Suleiman Halilu stated that DELT-Her represents an opportunity platform through which women can turn bold engineering ideas into solutions that change the world.

Out of the 9,925 project proposals, 14 women engineers emerged as awardees, receiving the said N229 million in grant funding to advance their innovative projects across critical sectors such as agriculture, clean energy, health, mobility, digital security and environmental sustainability.

This bold programme is meant to foster inclusion and the agency is clear on the mandate and  strategy  to empower  women  through DELT-Her, which  represents new capacity for the nation’s technology and manufacturing ecosystem, offering a unique perspective that drives better designs, smarter products and more human-centred innovation.

The NASENI boss had buttressed the significance of the initiative saying that “The first edition of DELT-Her in 2024 ignited a movement by empowering six outstanding female engineers with N70.5 million in grant support to develop pioneering innovations. This year, DELT-Her 2.0 attracted 9,925 project proposals, compared to just 120 applications in the previous year.”

Halilu added that “from mentoring 30 school girls in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in 2024, the programme scaled in 2025 to reach over 150 girls across Kwara, Niger, Plateau, Nasarawa and the FCT, providing mentorship, boot camps and fabrication kits that have inspired them to develop their own prototypes.”

The initiative has received copious commendations from other stakeholders with profound commitment to sustain the efforts and strengthen its capacity for more investment especially now that the government under the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu government is diversifying the Nigerian economy.

Contributing, Chairman of PICTT, Dr. Mohammed Dahiru commended the awardees, noting that their dedication, ingenuity and resilience exemplify the potentials of women in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). “As we honour these milestones, let us recommit to sustaining this momentum, ensuring that DELT-Her continues to bridge gaps and drive national development,” he remarked.

The National Assembly was not left out in the quest to expand the reach of the programme as the lawmaking chamber has offered its support and commitment.

The President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, represented by the Chairman, Senate Committee on NASENI, Senator Ezenwa Francis Onyewuchi, reaffirmed the commitment of the Senate to the ideals represented by NASENI including indigenous production, local content development and gender inclusion in science and technology. “We believe that a nation that builds its technology builds its destiny and a nation that empowers its women secures its future,” he added.

Akpabio was of the view that countries around the world are securing their future by unleashing the full potential of their citizens, both men and women and Nigeria cannot be left out. He said “When we exclude women, we cut the country’s capacity by half; but when we empower women, we double our strength, creativity, and collective wisdom.”

Senator Akpabio reaffirmed the commitment of the 10th Senate to the ideals represented by NASENI including indigenous production, local content development, and gender inclusion in science and technology. “We believe that a nation that builds its technology builds its destiny; and a nation that empowers its women secures its future,” he added.

“The popular slogan of transforming the Nigerian economy from consumption to production is the central message of the Senate President, which will move the nation from dependence to innovation.  This is because transformation cannot be achieved without science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), and an increased participation of women across Nigerian universities, research centres, and industries will drive sustainable technological growth.”

While commending Nigerian women for redefining possibilities through innovation, from designing renewable energy systems to improving agricultural technology, developing software for health and education, and leading scientific research, Senator Akpabio celebrated the DELT-Her awardees as “nation builders.”

While congratulating the award recipients, the Senate President assured NASENI and the PICTT of the National Assembly’s continued legislative, budgetary, and policy support to promote inclusive innovation, gender-responsive education, and national technological advancement.

The Minister of State for Finance, Dr. Doris Udoka, commended NASENI and PICTT for their foresight and dedication. She noted that their initiatives align meaningfully with the Federal Government’s broader commitment to promoting technological independence, industrial growth, gender inclusion and national competitiveness.

On her part, the Executive Director, Business Development, Nigerian Export-Import (NEXIM) Bank, Hon. Stella Okotete, described the event not as a mere ceremony where women clap and dance as mostly known, but a bold statement on the future of engineering, innovation and national development, which must include and be reshaped by women.

She said for too long, the face of science has been masculine, technology has been imagined as a word for men even though history and experiences have proven that when women lead in innovation, the entire community strives. “From designing labs to the boardroom, from policy desks to project site women continue to redefine what is possible” she noted.

Hon. Okotete further stated that NASENI’s deliberate investment in DELT-Her has reflected an understanding that empowering women in engineering is not charity, but rather a smart economic and sound nation-building step. “When a woman engineer designs to build with empathy, perception and purpose; when a woman leads, she opens doors for others to follow.

“The development of neem into neem oil, a product that was left fallow in the streets of northern Nigeria has energize the women and with such determination, women are not just defining tomorrow’s future but actually reshaping the present by creating a new ecosystem where women lead by example, where they make an impact that shape and redefine the future of past generations, present generations, and give hope to future generations,” she added.

Okotete congratulated the awardees on their excellence and charged them to see it not as a personal achievement but as a platform to inspire other women to lead, shape their future, and make an impact through the act of dismantling barriers and creating innovation.

She called on Nigerian women to renew their commitment to secondary school girls to hold dreams of becoming engineers, innovators and global leaders. “To us at NEXIM Bank, we are ready to partner with you to commercialize your products to all the countries we can export through our youth and women empowerment platform.”

Also, the Postmaster-General and CEO, Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST), Engr. Tola Odeyemi described the DELT-Her as a powerful platform that celebrates the ingenuity and resilience of women who are transforming the Nigerian scientific and technological landscape, adding that engineering is more than a profession but a way of thinking that provides discipline and creativity that yields solutions.

She further emphasized that DELT-Her initiative by NASENI has not only honoured achievements but also enforced diversity of thought and experiences to strengthen the nation’s capacity to innovate.