Why Nigeria must turn research into jobs, wealth – RMRDC DG

The Director-General of the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC), Prof. Nnanyelugo M. Ike-Muonso, has called for stronger collaboration between research institutions, polytechnics and the organised private sector to translate Nigeria’s research outputs into jobs, wealth creation and industrial growth.

He said Nigeria could accelerate industrialisation, strengthen local manufacturing and reduce dependence on imported products by building effective partnerships that connect research, technical education, technology transfer and private-sector investment.

Ike-Muonso spoke on Wednesday in Abuja at a strategic session organised by RMRDC with officials of the World Association of Industrial and Technological Research Organizations (WAITRO), representatives of Nigerian tertiary institutions and members of the organised private sector.

He said Nigeria’s economic prosperity depended increasingly on the effective utilisation of its abundant natural resources, indigenous technologies and human capital to develop competitive industries and expand domestic production.

According to him, the country has considerable natural resources, skilled professionals, vibrant entrepreneurs and tertiary institutions with significant research capabilities, but the challenge remains how to connect these assets to deliver tangible economic benefits.

“For too long, the gap between research and industrial application has limited the economic benefits that Nigeria derives from its investments in research and development,” he said.

The RMRDC chief executive argued that research findings must go beyond academic publications to produce commercially viable products, industrial processes and technologies capable of addressing practical economic needs.

He said stronger relationships between universities, polytechnics, research organisations and businesses would allow industries to identify their technological needs while enabling researchers to develop solutions that could be commercialised.

Ike-Muonso described the engagement with WAITRO as an opportunity to deepen international cooperation, establish sustainable institutional partnerships and strengthen Nigeria’s capacity to develop, adapt and apply technologies for industrial advancement.

He said RMRDC, as an active member of WAITRO, was seeking opportunities for Nigerian institutions to access international technical expertise, establish joint research programmes, develop innovative products and improve industrial processes.

The council, he added, was particularly interested in partnerships that would translate into measurable benefits for Nigerian businesses and the wider economy.

Ike-Muonso also highlighted RMRDC’s strategic partnership with Chinese innovation institutions, including the Shanghai Yangtze Delta Innovation Institute, Jiangsu Industrial Technology Research Institute and Anhui Yangtze Delta Innovation Institute, operating under the umbrella of the National Innovation Center par Excellence.

He said the quadripartite memorandum of understanding with the institutions provided a framework for cooperation in research and development, technology transfer, innovation, capacity building and commercialisation of research outputs.

The partnership, according to him, could help Nigerian institutions adapt foreign technologies to local industrial conditions, improve the processing of indigenous raw materials and develop products capable of competing in domestic and international markets.

He, however, stressed that technology transfer should not be limited to importing equipment or finished technologies, but must involve developing local skills, transferring technical knowledge and building the capacity to maintain, adapt and improve technologies.

“Our aspiration is not simply to access technology, but to strengthen Nigeria’s capacity to understand, adapt, develop and apply technology for its own industrial advancement,” he said.

The RMRDC director-general urged tertiary institutions and private-sector operators to use the engagement to identify areas of common interest and develop practical projects that would strengthen local production.

He encouraged universities and polytechnics to see industries as strategic partners in research, technology development and innovation, while urging businesses to recognise academic and research institutions as valuable sources of technical expertise and industrial solutions.

He said stronger collaboration could promote joint research projects, industrial attachments, technology incubation, student entrepreneurship, product development and the commercialisation of research outputs.

The organised private sector, he added, had a central role in mobilising investment, identifying industrial challenges and creating markets for innovations developed by research institutions.

Ike-Muonso identified the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture and the Nigerian Association of Small and Medium Enterprises as important partners in connecting businesses with research institutions.

He also highlighted the potential contributions of the Bank of Industry, Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority and National Automotive Design and Development Council in facilitating industrial financing, technology-driven manufacturing, export-oriented production and local content development.

He said Nigeria needed a coordinated approach that brought together research expertise, investment, infrastructure, market access and effective policies to accelerate industrial growth.

In his presentation, the Executive Secretary of the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), Prof. Idris Bugaje, warned that neglecting technical and vocational education could undermine Nigeria’s industrialisation ambitions.

Bugaje said polytechnics were designed to produce the technicians, technologists, artisans and other skilled personnel required to drive manufacturing, infrastructure development and technological innovation.

He explained that while universities contributed to theoretical research and conceptual development, polytechnics were expected to equip students with the practical competencies needed to translate knowledge into industrial production.

“Any nation that neglects TVET, be sure her industrialisation is doomed to fail,” he said.

The NBTE chief said Nigeria’s pursuit of self-reliance, import substitution and sustainable industrial growth depended on strengthening the connection between technical institutions and industry.

He identified practical skills acquisition, technological adaptation, entrepreneurship and the alignment of curricula with industrial requirements as essential to making polytechnic education more responsive to the economy.

According to him, polytechnics can support indigenous innovation by fabricating agro-allied machinery, food-processing equipment and renewable energy prototypes using locally sourced materials.

He added that technical education should prepare graduates not only to seek employment but also to establish businesses capable of creating jobs and strengthening the small and medium-scale enterprise sector.

Bugaje cited China’s industrial development as an example of how technical and vocational education could be aligned with national industrial policies to accelerate economic transformation.

He said China’s model demonstrated the benefits of integrating technical colleges with manufacturing facilities and industrial zones, allowing students to combine classroom learning with practical experience on production lines.

Such an approach, he argued, could reduce the mismatch between the skills acquired by graduates and the competencies required by employers.

The NBTE executive secretary called for stronger partnerships between polytechnics and manufacturers to review curricula, modernise laboratories and workshops, and expand industrial training opportunities.

He proposed that industrial training placements should evolve into structured, long-term apprenticeships that allow students to acquire practical experience by working on actual production lines while pursuing their studies.

He also advocated work-based learning programmes that would enable industry workers to obtain National Diploma and Higher National Diploma qualifications through arrangements that recognise practical experience and assess competencies on the job.

Bugaje further called for the transformation of polytechnic workshops into production and research hubs capable of serving surrounding industrial clusters and commercial markets.

He cited the One Polytechnic, One Product initiative as an example of an approach that could encourage institutions to develop marketable products, promote local manufacturing and create opportunities for technical entrepreneurship.

He also highlighted the longstanding disparity between Higher National Diploma and university degree holders, saying biases against technical qualifications had discouraged students and distorted career progression in the civil service and industry.

Bugaje said efforts to address the disparity were important to raising the status of technical education and encouraging more young people to pursue technical careers.

He also called for the establishment of industry advisory boards at faculty and school levels in polytechnics to ensure that curricula reflected the changing needs of manufacturers and other employers.

According to him, the NBTE’s minimum academic standards allow polytechnics to adapt 10 per cent of their curricula to meet the specific needs of local industries, while retaining the prescribed 90 per cent.

He said adequately funded technical institutions, modern training facilities and genuine partnerships with manufacturers were essential to turning polytechnics into drivers of national industrial growth.

At the strategic session, Ike-Muonso also proposed that discussions should focus on identifying priority areas for collaboration, developing joint research and technology projects, promoting commercialisation, strengthening capacity building and establishing a framework for monitoring agreed initiatives.

He said RMRDC was committed to facilitating partnerships within its mandate and working with relevant stakeholders to ensure that the discussions produced practical outcomes.

The council’s WAITRO focal person, Dr. Oluremi Elusoji, in his vote of thanks, expressed appreciation to the international delegation, government institutions, tertiary institutions and private-sector representatives for their participation.

Elusoji said the engagement had reinforced the importance of collaboration in translating research outputs into practical solutions, promoting local value addition and advancing Nigeria’s industrialisation agenda.

He expressed the hope that the relationships established at the meeting would be sustained and developed into concrete initiatives that would benefit participating institutions and the country.

The meeting underscored the need for Nigeria to move beyond generating research findings and strengthen the mechanisms for turning indigenous knowledge, technical expertise and locally available resources into commercially viable products.

Participants were encouraged to pursue partnerships that would improve manufacturing capacity, create employment opportunities, develop local technologies and reduce dependence on imported industrial inputs.

The central message was that Nigeria’s industrial transformation would depend not merely on its natural resource endowment, but on how effectively it connects research, technical education, investment and manufacturing to generate jobs, wealth and sustainable economic growth.