Minister of Innovation ,Science and Technology, Chief Uche Geoffrey Nnaji has commissioned a N100 million ultramodern Chemistry laboratory at the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA) which was upgraded by the National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion (NOTAP) and PZ Cussons Nigeria PLC.
The minister during the commissioning ceremony hailed NOTAP and PZ Nigeria PLC for the gesture saying it would boost practicals in the institution and enhance productivity among students.
According to Nnaji, ‘’One of the strategic partners in NOTAP-Industry is PZ Cussons Nigeria Plc. The National Office is in partnership with the Company in three initiatives namely: Technology story Board, NOTAP-Industry Technology Transfer Fellowship (NITTF) and NOTAP-Industry research Laboratory Upgrade which entails upgrade of research laboratories in Universities and Research Institutes.”
Represented by the director general, NOTAP, Dr Obiageli Amadiobi, the minister further stated that the research Laboratory Upgrade is one of the schemes and aimed at providing state-of -the-art equipment to Universities and Research Institutes in order to have a sound research infrastructure to produce reliable and viable results.
The minister noted that “ PZ Cussons Nigeria Plc have also upgraded additional five (5) laboratories in the universities and each of this laboratories was upgraded at a cost of One Hundred Million Naira and one of the beneficiary universities is the Federal University of Technology, Akure, Ondo State which is the seventh upgraded chemical laboratory and the first in the South West geopolitical zone.”
“At this juncture, I would like to call upon other Industries to emulate this laudable gesture of PZ as I promise that PZ and other Industries who key into this initiative that their efforts will not go in vain. The Ministry through NOTAP will find a legal way of reciprocating this gesture. I would also like to call on the benefitting Institutions to put the equipment into judicious use.
“The reason we are gathered here today is to witness the commissioning of the upgraded laboratory’s equipment aimed at facilitating credible research and development.””
Also speaking, the Director General NOTAP, Dr Obiageli Amadiobi, explained that the office is one of the 17 parastatals of the federal ministry of science and technology with the mandate of regulating the inflow of foreign technology into the country.
Represented by Director Consultancy Services of NOTAP, Mrs Yejide Akinkunmi, said “ today as we are witnessing the commissioning of the seventh upgraded laboratory, may I sincerely appreciate the former Chief Executive Officer of PZ Cussons Nigeria Plc, Mr. Christos Giannopoulos for his doggedness and believe in the partnership and also to the current Chief Executive Officer, Mr Dimitris Kostianis and his team for this wonderful synergy. As a regulatory agency, we will continue to ensure that we reciprocate this gesture with the ambit of the law.”
