Uche Amunike
The National Research and Development Foundation(NRDF) draft executive bill was inaugurated June 16, in Abuja by the Honorable Minister of Education, Mallam Adamu Adamu, who went on to task members to think up initiatives that will be committed towards having an all-round knowledge economy.
The Minister, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Education, Arc Sonny Echono, applauded the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), for birthing the NRDF initiative.
Represented by Arc Echono, the Minister said that the committee would undertake one of the most significant assignments on behalf of, not just the Ministry, but the country as a whole.
His words: ‘the task of preparing a draft Executive bill is not an ordinary job. It requires the best to do it and that is why some of our best and tested lawyers, academics and industry leaders have been called upon to do this assignment.
He implored the committee to show commitment while carrying out their tasks in order not to disappoint Nigerians who are looking up to them to deliver. He advised that the team should work hard in boosting efforts in research and development, as it remains a panacea needed to redefine the country’s path to a knowledge economy.
Hear him: ‘The nation has high expectations from the outcome of your work because the Federal Ministry of Education has decided to demonstrate that we house the historically-acknowledged leaders of research, being the universities, who also, with our polytechnics and Colleges of Education, hold the task of redefining the path of Nigeria’s knowledge economy, without which we cannot be competitive at the global stage. It is expected that your committee will fashion out the legal framework that will define the place of Research and Development (R&D) as the main parameter for measuring the strength and sustainability of our GDP, which size adds up to nothing without injection of knowledge through problem solving research’.
The Minister mandated the committee chairman, Prof Auwal Yadudu to complete its assignment and produce a report to be assessed by the Ministry for transmission to the Federal Executive Council and subsequently, the National Assembly, in other to approve the bill for presidential assent.
The Executive Secretary of TETFund, Professor Suleiman Bogoro in an earlier interview, said that the nation’s intellectuals should be focused about taking up its responsibilities by bringing ideas that would fast-track the development of Nigeria especially in the area of research and development.
His words: ‘While the military is fighting insecurity and while the politicians are addressing the larger issues through the constitutional amendment, we the intellectuals must do the right thing to remind them that we are there, that we can chart a path for this nation. That is why we asked you to join us in this exercise’.
In his concluding response on behalf of the members of the committee, its Chairman, Prof Yadudu promised that the task will be carried out with the utmost dedication and seriousness it deserved.
