By Dwelleth Morountodun
The Minister of Science and Technology, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, on Tuesday, stressed that Nigeria should embrace Nano-technology,
even as the country is predicted to hit I billion people in 80 years time.
He, however, said that Nigeria is set to domesticate the technology so as to enhance the socio-economic development of the country.
Onu made the disclosure when he received the report of the National Steering Committee on Nano-technology policy at the ministry’s headquarters in Abuja on Tuesday.
According to him, it is through Nano-technology that Nigeria can achieve food security, revamp the health sector, develop space technology, medicine, security and defence and many more aspects of human endeavors.
Onu, said: “Nigeria must fully embrace and domesticate Nano-technology, as well as commence further research to enable it to be in a leadership role in the areas of nano-technology.
“In the areas of communication and space technology, Nano-technology is so critical because many of the advances in these areas would not have been possible without investment in Nano-technology.”
The Minister underscores the need for Nigeria to embrace the new technology in view of its rising population.
“In the next 30 years, Nigeria may be the third most populous nation in the world, while in the next 80 years our population will hit 1 billion.”
He added, “What this means is that we will have more people to feed and more to provide shelter for.”
The Minister said this was the reason the Federal Government is striving hard to develop policies with a view to making the economy a knowledge and innovation-driven one.
He said Nanotechnology is an emerging technology set to revolutionize the manufacturing technology process by making most products lighter, smaller, stronger, cleaner and very precise.
He further said that the application and utilization of Nano-Technology is being made in various fields such as Agriculture, Health, Medicine, and Chemical Industries to enhance the quality of lives of citizens.
Earlier the Chairman of the National Steering Committee on Nano-technology Mrs. Stella Igwilo, said the policy will improve healthcare, industry, manufacturing, agriculture, and general development for the country.
She further highlighted the efforts of the Organized Private Sector, Research institutes, universities and relevant MDA’s in the development of the policy.
In his own speech, Prof. Sambo Abubakar, a former DG of Energy Commission of Nigeria and a member of the steering committee stressed the need for Nigeria to invest massively in emerging technologies for the benefit of the country.