The National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion (NOTAP) has donated state-of-the-art laboratory equipment and chemicals worth millions of naira to Omuma Technical Secondary School in Oru-West local government area of Imo State, as part of efforts to enhance science education at the secondary school level.
Speaking during the commissioning ceremony, the director-general of NOTAP, Dr. Obiageli Amadiobi explained that the donation was made under the agency’s “Model Chemistry Laboratory Equipment Upgrade” initiative, launched in 2018.
She said the programme was designed to encourage the teaching of practical science and technology in Nigerian schools, with a view to “catching them young” and advancing the nation’s technological development.
Amadiobi decried Nigeria’s heavy reliance on imported technologies, describing it as unsustainable for a country aiming to compete in the global innovation space. She emphasised that meaningful national development is impossible without investing in science and technology, beginning with a solid foundation at the secondary school level.
She revealed that the commissioning of the Omuma Technical Secondary School laboratory marks the seventh such upgrade across the country. She reaffirmed NOTAP’s commitment to expanding the programme to cover more schools across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones, urging support from both government and private sector stakeholders to sustain the effort.
Amadiobi congratulated the school community for being selected and charged them to make responsible use of the equipment. She also expressed gratitude to the Minister of Innovation, Science, and Technology, Chief Uche Nnaji for his continued support to NOTAP.
Representing the Imo State governor, Senator Hope Uzodinma; the Commissioner for Education, Prof. Ikeguoha, described science education as the foundation of sustainable economic growth. He applauded NOTAP for choosing Omuma and called on the school to safeguard the equipment.
In a statement by Raymond Ogbu of NOTAP’s public relations unit, other stakeholders present at the event also commended the agency for its impactful and forward-thinking initiative.
