Promoting innovation for national development

There is absolutely no way that government and its functionaries can operate in an environment where people are unaware of their activities. People must know or must be made to know. Thus, the National Education Innovations Exhibition was organized to principally bring to public attention innovations taking place in schools within the country’s educational setting. […]

There is absolutely no way that government and its functionaries can operate in an environment where people are unaware of their activities. People must know or must be made to know. Thus, the National Education Innovations Exhibition was organized to principally bring to public attention innovations taking place in schools within the country’s educational setting. Innovation, according to President Goodluck Jonathan, is “an approach towards thinking differently, that must be encouraged and ultimately nurtured.”
It is unfortunate that today most Nigerians look outwards to obtain equipment and materials that could be produced more efficiently in Nigeria. It is therefore clear that a lot is being lost due to improper harnessing and coordination between the educational sector and the larger society, with special emphasis on the organized private sector. This may simply be described as a “mis-match between education”, (or innovation), “and the needs of industries”.
It is therefore clear that the organizers of the exhibition hope to, among other things, bring to world-wide public attention, equipment and materials produced by educational institutions, provide awareness on these to relevant government agencies and the organized private sector towards enhancing the quality of the products.
To achieve this, there is need to utilise all identifiable linkages between educational and research institutes with the private sector. At the same time, commercialising these products would reduce, significantly, import dependency and enhance exports of such equipment and materials. This way the country’s balance of payment will increase and job creation improved.
As rightly noted by the President at the event, “mass production of these innovations would not only help to grow our economy but also ensure that we are less dependent on imported equipment and materials.”
With a growing economy, the demand for skilled manpower is rising while the gap between private sector involvement and Technical and Vocational education training is even more visible.
It was indeed a day to celebrate by stakeholders, as over 100 institutions and private investors meet together to rub minds and polish ideas under the watchful eyes of the Minister of Education.
As managers are wont to say “Information is power”, and we wait to see how much impact this initiative would have on the next phase of the exhibition. On the part of the students, would it jumpstart a new generation of thinkers? Would it push entrepreneurial skill to another level in the organized private sector?
T. H Umar, Wuse II, Abuja.