By Funmilayo Adeyemi
The Minister of Education, Prof. Tahir Mamman has commended the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) for proffering solutions to the missing link between academia and the industry.
Mamman made the commendation in Abuja on Tuesday during a press conference on the TETFund Research Exhibition, scheduled to hold in November 17.
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The minister said intense and wide consultations were ongoing with institutions and organisations that could partner with and support TETFund.
This he said was to drive interest and encourage organisations and individuals to participate and identify technologies with a view to establishing enterprises and/or enhancing the performance of existing businesses.
The minister expressed confidence in the fund for recognising the imperative need to enhance the linkages of these impressive academia performances to industry and the day-to-day life on the average Nigerian.
“This is in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of Mr President, which mainly aims at “rebooting” the economy through the massive generation of jobs, creation of wealth and the improvement of the general welfare of Nigerians.
“It is also to see and use such technologies for establishing viable enterprises for the provision of goods and services with net effect of massive generation of jobs, creation of wealth,” he said .
Mamman added that to implement the mandate, TETFund had further established a Research Fair Sub-Committee under the NRFS&MC in July 2024, to serve as the Local Organising Committee (LOC).
According to him, the committee are to urgently take stock of all research output technologies from Universities, Polytechnics, Colleges of Education, Research Institutes and others, and document them.
“They are to also screen and select candidate technologies to be showcased at the research fair with emphasis on technologies that will immediately impact upon and grow the national economy.
“To cluster selected technologies into sectors to ease exhibition and catalyse the interest of potential investors and entrepreneurs.
“To identify, collaborate, reach out to and closely work with all relevant stakeholders (business support, funding and IP management) for success and effectiveness of the fair,” he added.
He added that financial institutions, funding agencies and venture capitalists had been identified to provide funding to the promising organisations, individuals and entrepreneurs who source technologies to establish enterprises.
He also said that the Call Circular inviting the Institutions and individuals to submit their technologies as entries to the fair had been finalised and would be released today.
He urged researchers, inventors and creators who expressed interest to showcase their technologies, to participate free of charge in the fair.
The Chairman, TETFund research fair committee, Mr Umar Bindir, promised to take the bull by the horn to deliver on the mandate of the president in the area of research.
On his part, the TETFund Executive Secretary, Sonny Echono, expressed the appreciation of the federal government for the commencement of the project through the media briefing.
Echono pledged the readiness of the fund to harness the potential recorded in the area of innovation and creativity in tertiary institutions.
He called on private investors to take advantage of the fair to showcase their works, leading to job creation in the country.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the event, which is set to bring together researchers, inventors, and creators to share their cutting-edge projects and visionary ideas, will take place at Eagle Square, Abuja.(NAN)
