The Abdulkadir Kure University Minna (AKUM) Niger State is exploring a partnership with National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion (NOTAP in on Research and technology development.
The Vice Chancellor of the University, Professor Mohammed Aliyu Paiko, made this known when he paid a courtesy visit to the Director General of NOTAP, Barr. Obiageli Amadiobi, at the office headquarters in Abuja.
In a statement by the Head of Public Relations and Protocol of NOTAP, Solomon D. Nshem, the Vice Chancellor described NOTAP as the melting pot of technology, science, and innovation in Nigeria. He added that the visit to the agency aimed to explore areas of partnership in research to strengthen the activities of the university.
He emphasized that the University has a lot to learn from NOTAP.
“NOTAP has a lot to offer AKUM, especially in its initiatives like the Intellectual Property Technology Transfer Offices (IPTTOs), the NOTAP-Industry Technology Transfer Fellowship (NITTF), and the NOTAP-Industry Research Laboratory Upgrade Project (NIRLUP),” Prof. Paiko said.
Professor Paiko added that the university management strongly believes in what NOTAP is doing and is appealing for the establishment of an IPTTO on the university campus and the upgrade of its chemical laboratory to enhance research activities within the university community.
In response, the Director General of NOTAP, Barr. Obiageli Amadiobi, welcomed the team from AKUM, noting that apart from its major statutory regulatory function of technology transfer agreement registration, NOTAP is also involved in intellectual property promotion, protection, and commercialization of indigenous research and development results and inventions.
The NOTAP boss added that with the support of the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) in 2006, NOTAP commenced the Industry/Academia Linkage programme through the establishment of Intellectual Property and Technology Transfer Offices (IPTTOs), and so far, 68 have been established in knowledge institutions across the country.
She added that the IPTTOs were established to enable researchers to engage in demand-driven research for immediate impact on the socio-economic lives of Nigerians and that NOTAP is willing to partner with the University to deepen Research and Development (R&D) activities in Nigeria.
“NOTAP is also collaborating with PZ Cussons Nigeria Plc to upgrade selected chemical laboratories of research centres and tertiary institutions to meet global standards to encourage the multinational companies operating in Nigeria to patronize local research centres,” she said.
Dr. Amadiobi informed the AKUM team that this year’s interview for selected candidates in the NITTF programme will take place on Wednesday, 10th of July 2024, at the NOTAP conference room and urged the University to officially apply for consideration in the NOTAP IPTTO project.
The highlight of the visit was the inauguration of Dr. Amadiobi into the honorary fellowship of Abdulkadir Kure University Minna by the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Mohammed Paiko.(VoN)