Nigeria’s National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion (NOTAP) has unveiled plans to revive the technology transfer project on fruit juice production.
The NOTAP’s Director-General, Dr. Obiageli Amadiobi, gave this hint when she led a team of the agency on a courtesy visit to the management of the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC) in Abuja.
A statement issued the agency’s Deputy Director, Public Relations, Solomon Nshem, indicated that the fruit juice project, which started in 2019 with a pilot plant in Paiko, Niger State, had enormous economic potential, especially if it could be replicated in other geopolitical zones in the country
Amadiobi told the RMDRC’s team that the project aligned with the current administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which aims to create wealth, jobs, and self-reliance for the country by combining the technological expertise of both organisations.
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In accordance with Presidential Executive Order No. 5, she solicited the collaboration of the RMRDC on some of its flagship initiatives, including the NOTAP Research Laboratory Upgrade Project, Intellectual Property Technology Transfer Offices (IPTTOs), the NOTAP Industry Technology Transfer Fellowship (NITTF), and the Database of Nigerian Professionals.
In his response, the RMRDC’s Director-General, Prof. Nnanyelugo Ike-Muonso, expressed her delight on the project’s concept but advised that there was need for an audit of the pilot plant’s status and a determination of the business operation requirements in order to determine the viability and profitability of the project
According to him, the RMRDC could also work with NOTAP to upgrade its labs, train RMRDC employees on intellectual property rights, and conduct research and development commercialisation drives with universities.
At the end of the discussions during the meeting, the Directors-Genera; agreed that in order to ensure the project’s success and cooperation, both agencies’ employees should conduct a facility visit the Paiko site for evaluation and other follow-up discussions.
Experts believe that the collaboration of the two agencies will improve intellectual property creation, research and development (R&D) commercialisation, technology transfer, and industry connections for research in order to accelerate Nigeria’s technological capacity required to catalyze the digital economy drive of the government.
