—-We’re addressing barriers affecting acceptance, patronage

By Dayo Johnson, Akure

The National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI),  said that it is addressing the longstanding barriers affecting the widespread acceptance and patronage of Made-in-Nigeria products.

It’s Deputy Director of Engineering, Joseph Alasoluyi, said this during an engagement held in Akure, Ondo State capital, with key stakeholders in the public and private sectors, particularly industry players, regulatory bodies, and research institutions.

The event was designed to promote made-in-Nigeria products and accelerate homegrown technological advancements.

Alasoluyi who said that the agency was establishment in 1992, added that it was set up to promote science, technology, and engineering as a foundation for Nigeria’s development and currently operates 12 institutes nationwide to achieve its objectives.

According to him “The idea of this programme is to interface to ensure we produce products using our indigenous technology.

” This is what NASENI is out for, to ensure that homegrown technologies are encouraged. We are out there to ensure we integrate effort to ensure that locally technology is used to develop products within the resources we have.

“NASENI’s “3 Cs” – Creation, Collaboration, and Commercialisation – that define NASENI’s strategic mandate: Creating innovations through research, Collaborating with partners to develop and refine products, and Commercialising these solutions to benefit the economy.

“Our achievements include the development of solar irrigation systems, CNG conversion centres, building machines capable of producing up to 1,000 blocks per hour, 10-inch tablets, locally made laptops, and electric tricycles (Keke Napep) set for market launch.

Also speaking, the Deputy Vice Chancellor, Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA), Dr Samuel Oluyamo, lamented that “many promising research outputs are left moribund due to lack of funding and weak linkages between research institutions and industry.

Oluyamo expressed concern over the federal government’s commitment to funding research and development in the country.

He said that many academic innovations remain shelved due to lack of support for commercialisation and poor infrastructure.

According to him “Until we upscale research into mass production, technological growth will remain elusive,” he said.

An official from the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Adekole Adetokunbo, said that “poor product quality, limited public awareness, and price variations makes Nigerian products less competitive.

Adetokunbo said that there was need for “strategic branding and consumer education.

In his contribution, a representative from the National Association of Small Scale Industrialists (NASSI), Akadiri Olawaseun, said that “the core of Nigeria’s industrial challenge is a perception problem, fuelled by weak government policies.

Akadiri declared that Nigerian-made products, such as electrical cables, are often superior to foreign alternatives but suffer from limited trust and poor advocacy.