Minister urges tech stakeholders to commercialise research findings

Dr Ogbonnaya Onu, the Minister of Science and Technology, has called on all stakeholders in the sector to help commercialise research findings for the development of the country.

Onu made the call when he received the report of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology (FMST) Committee on the Blueprint for Commercialisation of Research and Development (R&D) Results on Monday in Abuja.

He said that such effort would create more job opportunity for the citizens.

“All the stakeholders in the value chain of R&D commercialisation must ensure that viable R&D results available in the nation’s universities and other research institutions are commercialised.

“This is for the purposes of wealth creation, employment generation and industrial transformation of the Nigerian economy.

“To this end, FMST has decided to produce this blueprint on commercialisation of R&D results in Nigeria to serve as a guide.

“Also, as reference material for researchers and research institutions in the country to facilitate the commercialisation of their R&D results and innovative efforts.’’

Dr Dan Ibrahim, the Chairman, Committee on the Blueprint for Commercialisation of Research and Development (R&D) said that the Nigerian technological base was very weak.

According to him, the nation imports and consumes foreign technologies deployed in virtually all sectors of the economy to the detriment of indigenous technologies.

He said that the scenario created unnecessary pressure on the scarce foreign reserve of the nation.

Ibrahim affirmed that Nigerian researchers, inventors and innovators were very intelligent and creative.

He, however, added that converting R&D results and inventions into products and services had been the greatest challenge.

According to him, converting R&D results and inventions into products and services was mainly due to the very weak intellectual property culture among Nigerian researchers, inventors and innovators.

“The other contributing factors include the low quality of the R&D results and inventions emanating from the National Innovation System, inefficient management of intellectual property assets, among other.

“ As a result of these challenges, many of the R&D results and inventions are lying idle on the shelves of the research institutions across the country without being commercialised.

“Therefore, there is urgent need to reverse the trend, “ he said.

Ibrahim said that government was presently in dire need of diversification of the Nigerian economy to make it globally competitive.

According to him, government can only achieve its primary objective of diversification of the economy through commercialisation of R&D results lying idle on the shelves of the research institutions across the country.