The National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion (NOTAP) has recognized industries for keying into NOTAP-Industry Technology Transfer Fellowship (NITTF) and sponsoring Nigerians in undertaking PhD programmes.
The industries recognised are PZ Cussons Nigeria Plc, Nestle Nigeria Plc, Julius Berger Nigeria Plc, Nigeria Bottling Company Plc, Airtel Nigeria Plc, Nigeria Breweries Plc, Friesland Campina WAMCO Nigeria Plc, Dufil Prima Food Plc, Promasidor Nigeria Limited, Procter and Gamble Nigeria Plc, Chemical and Allied Products (CAP) Plc.
Speaking during the event held in Lagos State, the director-general of NOTAP, Dr. DanAzumi Ibrahim, said the NITTF programme was initiated by his office in 2015 to boost human capital development, regulate the inflow of foreign technology into the country through the registration of Technology Transfer Agreement (TTA) but also have the responsibility of promoting the development of indigenous technologies.
He noted that in carrying out one of its statutory mandates, NOTAP discovered a huge gap between the academia and the industry especially in linking research and development (R&D) results to the manufacturing sector of the economy, hence the need to bridge the gap through the NITTF programme.
The DG stated that to address the weakness and bridge the gap in the process of acquiring and adopting foreign technologies in Nigeria, NOTAP initiated some programmes one of which is the NOTAP-Industry Technology Transfer Fellowship (NITTF).
Ibrahim further stated that the recognition was to appreciate the companies for sponsoring Nigerians to acquire higher degrees and skills, as well as seek the sustainability of the programme.
The NOTAP boss revealed that though the programme has impacted many Nigerians, it also has some challenges which, according to him, includes the absence of an industry research guide, frequent ASUU strike, non-commercialisation of research and development (R&D) results emanating from the NITTF as well as decline in sponsorship/sponsors.
The DG on behalf of the management of the office appreciated the sponsoring companies for their magnanimity and encouraged more organizations to be part of the sponsorship, adding that the programme is designed to benefit both beneficiaries and sponsors.
A statement by the assistant chief information officer, NOTAP, Raymond Ogbu, said representatives of the sponsoring companies expressed their happiness at the recognition by NOTAP, as well as the resilience of the office in ensuring the success of the programme. They promised to not only sustain the programme but to also assist in popularising the NITTF scheme among their respective industry sector groups.
Also, they requested NOTAP to reach out to the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) and various industry sector groups for more awareness, as well as to increase the publicity of the programme to attract more companies to join the programme.
