…parleys VCs, experts at roundtable conference
The Board Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Prof. Adeolu Akande, has restated the commitment of the commission to commit more funds to research and prototypes resulting from grants from the commission to the academia.
The assurance by the chairman is coming at the backdrop of the recent disclosure that the commission had committed more than N500 million in funding research works in Nigerian universities.
Akande told a gathering of vice chancellors and professors from universities in the Southern part of the country at a roundtable conference in Lagos, that the commission acknowledged the importance of working with stakeholders to engender innovations and build indigenous technological capabilities that would strengthen the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) ecosystem.
The chairman explained that the roundtable was organized to dialogue with the academia, industry and other stakeholders on how research efforts and prototypes can be transformed into commercially-viable products that solve real-life problems.
He said: “We want to use this opportunity to assure you that the Commission will continue to give support to the educational sector in the interest of national development. We will also continue to encourage research and innovation in Nigeria’s tertiary institutions.
“Consequently, the Commission will continue to allocate the requisite resources to research, development and innovations necessary for the industry to continue to contribute to the socio-economic development of the country”, Akande added.
In his remarks at the forum, the commission’s Executive Vice Chairman (EVC), Prof. Umar Danbatta, maintained that academia remained a key driver of innovation in all spheres of human endeavours.
The EVC, who was represented by the Director, Legal and Regulatory Services of the Commission, Josephine Amuwa, spoke on why the Commission under his leadership was determined to not only give grants to the academia but also support the commercialisation of the prototypes developed to deepen the indigenous technological capabilities to grow the industry.
Also, the commission’s Executive Commissioner, Technical Services, Ubale Maska, who was represented by Director, Technical Standards and Network Integrity at the Commission, Bako Wakil, disclosed that the commission had, so far, awarded a total of 49 telecom-based research grants to the academia out of which 10 prototypes have been successfully developed.
He explained: “We are hopeful that these sessions will culminate in the development of a common framework that would facilitate the commercialisation of the existing prototypes and future research outcomes (prototypes) for the benefit of the economy and the industry.”
The Roundtable was organised by the NCC Research Prototypes and Development R&D Department to bring together resources persons, industry experts, the academia, relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), entrepreneurs and individuals who have successfully commercialised their inventions to brainstorm on the way forward for industry’s research output commercialisation.
Photo Caption
L-R: Prof. Kayode Adebowale, Vice Chancellor, University of Ibadan; Prof. Bola Oboh, Deputy Vice Chancellor, Academics & Research, University of Lagos; Prof. Adeolu Akande, Board Chairman, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC); Ms. Josephine Amuwa, Director, Legal and Regulatory Services, NCC; Prof. Adenike Oladeji, Vice Chancellor, Federal University of Technology, Akure; Prof. Owunari Gengewill, Vice Chancellor, University of Port Harcourt; and Prof. Kolawole Ajanaku, Director, Research, Covenant University, during a two-day Regional Roundtable with the Academia, Industry and other Stakeholders by the NCC which commenced on Wednesday in Lagos.
