By ABUBAKAR YUSUF.
The National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure, NASENI, under Professor Mohammed Sani Haruna had witnessed a major turn around in the last few years away from mere policy framework to realizing the potentials of skill development, acquisition, capacity building and local content development in recent times.
This was occasioned by the appointment of an astute administrator, academic, with the combination of technocratic and bureaucratic experience spanned for many years, breaking the jinx of using the science based activities only for experiments, but by extension deploying it to resolve myriads of problems bedeviling the country, especially post COVID.
His initiatives and strong innovations using local contents to promote both productive and manufacturing sector in Nigeria was unique in recent times, as his foray into local production and manufacturing of helicopter, fertilizer, insecticides and COVID vaccine was the best thing that will happen to the country.
For the renowned Professor Haruna, The Chief Executive Officer and Vice Chairman of National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure, NASENI, the singular idea of using educational degrees from university as a parameter to measure performance and gainful employment was not longer tenable, advocating a strong idea to explore more into skill development and entrepreneurial training.
His resolve and idea of using science to enrich all areas of our national life is unwavering, with a strong believe that scientific exploration will expose the country to series of development in all ramifications.
The positive research development and advancement had earned him as the father of modern scientific exploration, development and advancement, having successfully convened series of fora to not only educate , but practicalise the new area through workshops, talkshops, seminars, symposiums across the country.
With renew vigour been propagated by NASENI top notcher, there is a strong believe that the high unemployment rates put at 33% , job losses after COVID pandemic that ravaged the world, poverty rates that had put 133M Nigerians in dire jeopardy and uncertainty will be reversed in the shortest possible time.
This will be made possible by the mass production of items and equipment using the local contents policy of the NASENI and job creation, through various skill development and exploration.
It is obvious that giving the wealth of experience and deployment of same to the general public using well trained facilitators by NASENI, with the promotion of local contents, the rush for foreign currencies and import based economy being witnessed in the current dispensation will be a thing of the past.
With the current trend of awareness being carried out by NASENI, matching his words with action, will return Nigeria to the promise land.
The idea of local contents and production will conserve foreign reserves and will further force downward the high rate of dollars witnessed in recent times, or rather discourage continuous dolarisation of Nigeria economy to the detriment of our economy.
This will further encourage foreign direct investment FDI, investment surge and attract more investors to key in into both local and foreign products that will moderate and return the country’s economy to the good old days.
For NASENI helmsman, it will be a return to the good old days with robust policies and it’s framework geared towards liberating the Nigerian populace from the shackles of poverty and underdevelopment.
Written by ABUBAKAR YUSUF and can be reached on yus.abubakar3@gmail.com.
