The Nigeria Society of Engineers (NSE) has emphasised on the need to promote local inventions and support innovators for the country to achieve sustainable development and economic growth.
The engineers lamented that 90 per cent of the machines and equipment used in industries in Nigeria are imported from China, Japan, India, United States, among other foreign countries, which they said has limited the growth of innovative entrepreneur and the economy.
The Chairman, Nigeria Society of Engineers, Ikeja chapter, Engr. Funmilade Akingbagbohun, who spoke at the closing ceremony of the one-week maiden Innovative and creative fair, organised by the chapter, tagged: “Inno-creativ Fair2019”, said Nigeria has great innovators that have invented automated machines that have solved environmental issues, which has made lives easier for people in the manufacturing industry.
She said Nigeria must begin to embrace local contents built by Nigerian inventors if the economy must prosper, adding that more jobs would be created.
“Any nation that wants to develop requires the services of engineers for nation building and development and that is why we a have taken the bull by the horn as engineers to begin to look at the areas where we can begin to solve problems within our environment by creating and build inventions by ourselves,” she said.
In his remark, the Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Dr. Kadiri Obafemi Hamzat, said sustainable development and economic growth are always linked to the ability to innovate and create better ways in ensuring quality of life for the people.
Hamzat who was represented by the Head of ICT, Lagos state, Morenikeji Agbedeyi noted that innovation plays an important role in the growth of a global environment, adding that Nigeria is now in a period where its economy will no longer be driven by oil and gas, but through technology and innovation.
“The world today is powered by innovation in many developed world. The creative ability of young minds has always brought about remarkable innovative ideas, which are converted into product and services that can enhance better, easier and smarter lifestyle.
“The ease of doing business in maximising profits, creating jobs and economic opportunities and boosting entrepreneurship are all realisable when we create and promote opportunities for engineers and young minds to innovate,” he said.
He added that Lagos state, by its status as a rapidly growing city and state, has a great potential to experience a robust and economic prosperity for its people via innovation and creativity, noting, “For us we believe that what will help us achieve tremendous success is when innovations are technologically driven.”
In her remarks, the Chief Executive Officer, Lonadek Nigeria Limited, Engr. Ibilola Amao, who was the special guest of the event, stressed that local engineers need to create innovations and invention that are bankable, scalable, replicable and applicable in the Nigeria market.
She said having a good prototype is not good enough, adding that there should be a public-private partnership to encourage local inventions, which would be able to create jobs and businesses as well as create a supply chain around the components of what the innovators have in the market.