Nigeria is marching towards a new dawn in science – Minister

The Minister of Science and Technology, Dr Ogbonnaya Onu, has said there are signs that Nigeria is already onward march towards a new dawn in science. Dr Ogbonnaya Onu stated this at the ongoing 2018 Technology and Innovation Expo taking place in Abuja.  According to the minister, the number of patents granted to innovators and […]

The Minister of Science and Technology, Dr Ogbonnaya Onu, has said there are signs that Nigeria is already onward march towards a new dawn in science.

Dr Ogbonnaya Onu stated this at the ongoing 2018 Technology and Innovation Expo taking place in Abuja. 

According to the minister, the number of patents granted to innovators and inventors in the country had risen to 50 by 2017 ending, indicating that number of innovations and inventions were on the rise.

“Already, there are signs that we are on the onward march toward a new dawn. In 2015, there were only 6 patents for research findings in our country which were processed through the National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion, NOTAP. Barely a year later in 2016, the number increased to 16. By the end of last year, 2017, it rose significantly to 50.   

“This is a clear evidence of a remarkable improvement in the level of innovation in Nigeria,”he said.    

He said science and technology could bind Nigerians together in the common pursuit of creating more jobs, reating wealth, reducing poverty, strengthening the naira and reawaken Nigerians’ sense of pride.

“Nigeria can surpass the achievements of the advanced nations of the world [with science]. What we are doing today, shows clearly that we have the human resource that will help us achieve this,” Dr Onu said.