Former Director-General of Nigeria Economic Summit Group, Mr. Frank Nweke Jr, has stated that although Nigeria ranks as the 26th largest economy in the world, it had yet to harness the potentials for creativity and innovation of its people.
He challenged the Federal Government to invest huge resources in the country’s education sector and reiterated the need for government to develop strong political will at all levels because “public policy does not and cannot operate in a vacuum.”
Nweke, also a former Minister of Information and Communications, threw the challenge in Abuja while delivering a keynote address entitled: ‘Creativity and Innovation-key to African Renaissance’, during the 7th annual lecture of a non-profit organization, Lifeline Care Association, which was jointly organized by the National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion.
He said, “The potentials of creativity and innovation have not been harnessed by Nigeria as we currently speak. It is true and extremely laudable that Nigeria now ranks 26th largest economy in the world and largest in Africa with about $510 billion in nominal Gross Domestic Product. There is however a very big difference between being the 26th largest economy in the world and being one of the richest countries in the world.
“The difference here is with per capita income which characterizes a nation into one of three categories- factor driven economy, efficiency driven economy or an innovation driven economy. No country including Nigeria can develop by accident. If you don’t fund your educational system, Infrastructural and human structure you cannot expect to make progress.
“For Nigeria to really make that quantum progress, we need to invest more in our educational system, our educational institutions, research institutions, to encourage our academics, our talented people within our country to actually embrace research. And to support them financial and with policies. All of these things are as a result of conscious effort to move forward, to progress as a people and as a society or community.”
In an interview with journalists, the Director-General of NOTAP, Dr. Umar Bindir, said that for the nation to overcome its challenges, the government must encourage creativity and innovation.
“We must transform our education system from the bottom at the primary level up to the university level, we must transform to also become people who are producing science that matter, knowledge about our own system. We must transform to ensure that our science and knowledge can transform into our solutions so that we overcome our power, health, food security and other problems,” he stressed.
Source: Punch