By Paul Dada
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has pledged to commit 0.5 per cent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to Research and Development (R&D).
Tinubu says this is all in a bid to expedite national development as it will foster innovation, productivity, and economic growth.
He said this on Monday at at the Science, Technology and Innovation expo through the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator George Akume who represented him at the event.
He said: “It is pertinent to state that welding plays a critical role in strengthening our economy through its deployment and utilisation in manufacturing, science and technology, and oil and gas.
“Therefore, we would promote the application of the National Policy on Welding and Welding-Related Fields, approved by the government in 2022, to improve the contribution of the manufacturing sector to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of Nigeria, hasten innovation, lessen unemployment and reduce capital flight.
“Government will provide an enabling environment for the establishment of National Centres for Training in Welding and Welding-Related Fields (Centres of Excellence) in the six geopolitical zones of the country for training, re-training, evaluation and certification of persons in the practice of welding and welding-related fields.
“To make this a reality, I wish to direct the Federal Ministries of Finance and National Budget and Economic Planning to provide the required funds and modalities for the commencement of these centres.
“I am aware that the Federal Government, at the fifth edition of the Science, Technology and Innovation Expo 2021, declared that ‘in tandem with the decision made by the African Union Executive Council in 2006 to establish a target for all members states of one per cent of GDP investment in Research and Development (R&D) to improve innovation, productivity and economic growth, therefore, we want to reiterate that having come to terms with the challenges of this critical sector of the economy, we will henceforth dedicate 0.5 per cent of our GDP to R&D to fast track meaningful development’.
“It is also on record that the previous government of my predecessor, Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, made a significant effort in actualising this by communicating the decision of dedicating 0.5 per cent of our GDP to Research and Development to the National Economic Council to come up with modalities in achieving this noble intention of government.
“As a government, we would intensify our efforts in drawing the National Economic Council’s attention to hasten this dream’s actualisation to strengthen the Innovation, Science and Technology (IST) sector.” (Nation)