Why Run Before Learning To Walk?

We have here before us this great book titled “WHY RUN BEFORE LEARNING TO WALK”?, with the sub-title “REFLECTIONS ON HIGH TECHNOLOGY AS A STRATEGIC TOOL FOR DEVELOPMENT IN NIGERIA”, written by Professor Turner T. Isoun and Dr Miriam J. Isoun. The book is expertly written, well structured and packaged, and carefully printed, and is […]

We have here before us this great book titled “WHY RUN BEFORE LEARNING TO WALK”?, with the sub-title “REFLECTIONS ON HIGH TECHNOLOGY AS A STRATEGIC TOOL FOR DEVELOPMENT IN NIGERIA”, written by Professor Turner T. Isoun and Dr Miriam J. Isoun. The book is expertly written, well structured and packaged, and carefully printed, and is a great joy to read and assimilate. And the subject matter is of great national interest as a major work in STI, crucial for national development.
Review of this book, “WHY RUN BEFORE LEARNING TO WALK”?, is clearly a monumental task. It is a monumental task for me because the book is a tour de force, an intimidating document, and by no other authors than Professor Turner T. Isoun and Dr Miriam J. Isoun, who by represent, in my judgement, two of the greatest minds of our time. And I must confess that in many ways I do not consider myself worthy. But, it is a great honour and privilege to me because the book is a seminal work on a topic of great interest to me, and furthermore the book clearly demonstrates and justifies the great need for us to do things differently and adopt a paradigm shift in our future efforts in technology transfer and on science, technology and innovation development in Nigeria.
One of the beauties of this book is that it is not a fiction or simply an eye witness account. It is a report by authors who had a vision to initiate a policy, articulate and develop it, and had the sagacity to have colleagues and the government (especially Mr President) share in the vision; supervised the successful execution of the programmes and had the results fully documented, organised and embodied into this book, to ensure that we stay on track to become a global economic power house.   
Chairman, Ladies and Gentleman, in reviewing this book, it is pertinent to remind ourselves about the authors. Professor Turner T. Isoun, is one of Nigeria’s leading light among scientists, and truly the foremost authority in the formulation, administration and implementation of science, technology and innovation, for national development, especially with respect to the transfer of technology and promotion of innovation. Dr Miriam J Isoun (Wife of Professor Turner T. Isoun) is a renowned molecular biologist, with many decades of distinguish pioneering work on use of biodiversity conservation and modern science and technology for improving the quality of life in the Niger Delta Wetlands.
We begin this review by noting an observation made by Professor Turner T. Isoun in his inaugural editorial of March 1989 edition of Discovery and Innovation, the famous journal of African Academy of Science, (Cited on page v of this very book), “Historically, the scholar of both science and technology drew inspiration, or had an intuitive flash of insight, from the reservoir of a cultural background. Although, over time, the understanding of natural processes, the discoveries of science, and the structure, methods and tools of science have become isolated from their cultural origins and internationalised, they are, infact, the common patrimony of man everywhere on the globe.”
This profound statement, which has been universally acknowledged, can be restated thus: “People of all cultures are equally endowed by the Almighty Creator, and have severally contributed over time to what we refer to day as science and technology”. Therefore science technology and innovation had never been the preserve of any community. Thus over time, nations, communities or peoples world over, with passion to develop and excel had always copied the best ideas from those who had temporarily been ahead of them, internalised those ideas, improved on those ideas and forge ahead. This pattern is reflected in the history and growth of science and technology, contributed, to a large measure, to the rise and fall of empires/nations.
What comes out quite powerfully from this book, and which the authors very clearly and repeated referred to is the issue of our understanding of conventional wisdom and the global politics of science. Conventional wisdom, which came with colonialism, has been that we, in the Third World, particularly Africa (Nigeria), have not been part of the contributions to the branch of knowledge now embodied in STI. Thus we had always been advised and made to believe that we should keep our eyes away from high technologies; restrict our efforts at STI to rudimentary technologies and the so-called appropriate technologies, until we are considered fit, and given the go ahead, as it were, to venture into rapidly changing high technology sector. In other words we should first learn to stand and then to walk, before learning to run. This has been the conventional wisdom! However such wisdom or imposed growth pattern is clearly unfeasible in a fast-globalising world, and in the light of present ‘destructive growth’ in science and technology. Indeed an appreciation of this aspect of the global politics of science is essential for appreciating of the policy and prescriptions outlined in this book before us, to which we now focus our attention.
The first sighting of the title, “Why Run Before Learning To Walk” on the cover page with a photo of a rocket launch, could be quite intriguing, because, on the basis of conventional wisdom, the title appears to be sarcastic or a question designed to convey riddle or scorn, or at best rhetorical. However when the title is taken together with the sub-title, “Reflections on High Technology as a Strategic Tool for Development in Nigeria”, and in the light of today’s global politics of science and the development of nations, the title represents a very powerful statement. This suggests that we have before us a very serious topic and that this fascinating book demands serious attention.
This Book has over 630 pages, made up of 11 pages of introduction and acknowledgements, 600 pages of pain staking analysis with detailed documented reports, which, for the sake of clarity, are carefully organised into two parts, Part 1 and part 11, followed by 20 pages of elaborate index. The book is a pleasure to read, and is remarkable for its clarity of thought, the logic and consistency of reasoning, and the details of the data/information outlined in the appendices. The points are succinctly and clearly presented, without waste of words.
The major objectives, of this book can probably be summarised as two-fold:
(A) To advocate for a paradigm shift from, hitherto emphasis on appropriate/mature technologies, to a strategic adoption/acquisition of high technology, in juxtaposition with the creation of adequate environment and credible support structures and system; to ensure ownership or domestication of high technology as tools for national development and therein demonstrates the success and efficacy of this paradigm shift; and
(B) To issue a wake-up call to all Nigerians, especially the scientists, political leadership and opinion leaders and moulders, — a call to reclaim our intellectual confidence, banish self doubts, raise our sights, and run with confidence into the frontiers of high technologies, and lift our country out of poverty.
This book clearly demonstrates that the path to rapid development in Nigeria lies principally on the adoption of high technology as a strategic tool for development together with the establishment of a strong foundation of adequate support system and structures. These will ensure the rapid domestication of resulting skill and technologies, the spurring of innovation, innovation products and service, as well as, the reviving and reactivation of the entire national STI system, so as to open up the space for vast economic opportunities in the country. The book calls for a liberation of mind.
Indeed the book contains, not merely ‘REFLECTIONS’, as the subtitle indication, but in fact ‘PRESCRIPTION’ on how it should be done, in other words, a road map for Nigeria’s scientific and technological development, to enable  us  leap-frog into the global economic  system. This book is, as it were, truly a wake-up call to all Nigerians, (even to all of Africa and the whole of the third world nation), especially to the scientists, the opinion leaders/ moulders and the political leadership. The book, in essence, is advocating for a new mindset; it is calling for the liberation of the mind. The authors are implicitly  stating  that we (Nigeria), as late comers, attempting to enter the fast moving global train  CANNOT  afford to adopt the conventional wisdom of, waiting  to  first  master the old discarded or  appropriate technologies ( a re-invention of the wheel, as it were) before going  into high technology- the equivalent of learning  to walk before attempting to run.
It is a long –awaited book; a seminal work in every respect. this is a must have  and a must  read  book for  the scientist, the academic  and political leadership,  the technocrat, especially  public policy officers involved in STI planning,  promotion and development, as well as science / technology  correspondent of  the print and electronic media; it is a must have for the libraries in both the public and private sectors of the economy,  and indeed to all who have interest and stake in nation’s future development. It is a book the political leadership should really read very carefully and reflect on very deeply.
Mr chairman, distinguished ladies and gentlemen, in concluding this review, I must commend the authors for this wonderful book. It must be stated that in all things that the lsouns set out to do, they always leave their imprint, so it is even of this book. the antecedent of professor Turner T. Isoun attest to this, whether as the first vice chancellor of the Nigeria’s  first  university of science whether and technology, first  managing editor of Africa’s prestigious journal, discovery and innovation, seven years tenure as honourable  minister of  federal ministry of science and technology
(As an aside, it is needful to draw attention to the fact that this book was printed and published in Nigeria,( not in china or India); the print  and packaging quality clearly demonstrate that  we can really leap frog and  successfully join the fast-moving global train of developed nation, if we can only determine to, dedicatedly and with commitment , do thing differently, adopting clearly thought-out strategies. I commend olubenprinters, and  book builders editions Africa, the publishers, both in Ibadan, for a good job of packaging this wonderful product.)
 Going through this book has a fascination for me
Thank you ………….. protocol…… Mr. chairmen, ladies and gentlemen.