President Muhammadu Buhari said yesterday that the nation is making progress in inventions in the past seven and a half years with the repositioning of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI).
He said that in the future, the nation will be able to maintain and sustain its key infrastructures with less help from abroad.
He also said that NASENI is now empowered to develop local capacity in machine building and manufacturing, which is critical to Nigeria’s industrial development.
He said that the new NASENI will forge international alliances to acquire relevant technologies for the socioeconomic advancement of the country.
But NASENI Executive Vice President and CEO Professor Mohammad Sani Haruna said that the agency will soon provide an innovative technological solution for crude oil theft and sourcing.
Buhari bragged about his administration’s progress in commissioning the Muhammadu Buhari Technology and Innovation Complex at the NASENI headquarters in Idu, Abuja.
The President highlighted some outstanding achievements of NASENI under his administration.
He said: “Let me blow my trumpets myself and affirm that NASENI under my supervision as Chairman of the Governing Board has lived up to your expectations and has performed excellently.
“The agency has invented useful and historical intelligence and defense related equipment and devices and has reverse-engineered it in collaboration with renowned organizations: Armored Personnel Carrier (APC) with advanced features and Mine Resistance Ambushed Protected (MRAP), among others. .
“Currently implementing smart irrigation projects for multi-crop seasonal agriculture; the National Tractor Recovery, Rehabilitation and Redistribution (NTRRR) innovation in collaboration with Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Loans (NIRSAL) ;
“The assembly of two helicopters towards the first Made in Nigeria helicopter and the development of solar cells for the production of 100% solar modules using local raw materials, among others, are patriotic contributions to Nigeria’s transition to the manufacturing economy.”
The president expressed his confidence that he will bequeath a nation that will be able to ensure the future maintenance and sustainability of its key national infrastructures.
He said: “The current administration has invested heavily in various infrastructure facilities in highways, railways, water and aviation, among other sectors of our national economy.
“Beyond my administration, the maintenance, resources and sustainability of these critical infrastructures would have been a challenge in the medium and long term.
“However, with our deliberate repositioning of NASENI to be on par with other similar government agencies around the world and optimal performance, we are convinced that the future maintenance and sustainability of our key national infrastructures are assured.
“The new NASENI is, without a doubt, one of the most important legacies that my administration is leaving to the next Government in 2023.”
Buhari also ensured the nation accelerated industrial development with a focus on local capacity in construction and machine manufacturing.
He said: “NASENI has a long history of establishment and has been in existence for more than 30 years, but the agency has faced a myriad of challenges mitigating the realization of its full potential in accordance with the Act establishing the agency.
“However, under my presidency, NASENI is undergoing a reinvention and transformation to become a technology and innovation hub for our national development breakthroughs.
“Accordingly, I have strategically repositioned NASENI to develop local capacity in machine building and manufacturing, which is critical to Nigeria’s industrial development.
“The agency is now empowered through the provision of adequate financial, human and material resources and the autonomy and independence to forge international alliances to acquire the technologies relevant to the country’s socio-economic and industrial advancement.
“The agency is now taming foreign technologies and product development through backward integration. The recent attraction of a CZK 250 million or US$10.5 million research and development grant to Nigeria by NASENI It is evident that our transformation is achieving the result of building a globally competitive agency.”
An elated Buhari bestowed the National Honor on Executive Vice President and Executive Director of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), Prof. Mohammad Sani Haruna.
He said: “While I congratulate Ing. Prof. Mohammad Sani Haruna, Executive Vice President for his exemplary leadership and tireless efforts, let me thank the EVC and lead him in bestowing the Excellent Service Award and a National Honor of Officer of the Order of the Republic Federal (OFR) that will be conferred on it at the last Federal Executive Council in December 2022.
“With the commissioning of this complex today and the facilities available, the foundation of Nigeria’s knowledge economy is laid and the future of our national competitiveness among global economies is clearly bright.
“We are confident that these advanced Science and Engineering facilities will help our nation achieve the African Union Agenda 2063 and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.”
For his part, Haruna said the agency will soon provide an innovative technological solution for crude oil theft and sourcing, among others.
He said, “Furthermore, NASENI stands ready and God willing will soon provide an innovative technological solution to stop crude oil sourcing and theft; vandalism of power lines and pipelines, as well as surveillance and monitoring devices for our railways, highways and sea lanes”.
On the security challenges facing the nation, he said that some of the equipment required by the armed forces will now be innovated locally.
He said: “We congratulate His Excellency’s administration for supporting the military in defeating non-state actors through the steady acquisition of military equipment to address our multifaceted unconventional security challenges.
“NASENI has observed that the armed forces are the largest user and importer of highly technical equipment in the country. Consequently, the agency perceived the need to collaborate with the armed forces to study various aspects of their technical needs in order to combine capabilities of both organizations for national sustainability.
“Of course, new weapons and next-generation capabilities must be innovated and developed locally with the intent to counter and disrupt perceived enemy capabilities, as well as protect the nation from unforeseen sanctions and capital flight.”
