Research institute partners FUTO, others on techno-transfer

The authorities of the Federal Institute of Industrial Research, Oshodi (FIIRO), Lagos, is set to partner the Federal University of Technology, Owerri (FUTO), in the area of technological transfer, training of its graduating students and other interested agencies in entrepreneurship programmes.

Director General of the institute, Prof. Gloria Elemo who disclosed this in her keynote address at the sixth international conference of the centre said so many successes have been recorded in products research innovations since it was established in 1956.

At the event attended by former minister of water resources, Sarah Ochepke and seasoned scholars, Elemuo, opined that empowerment of the women folk through education remained the key and urged governments at all levels to take it serious.

She disclosed that more than 500,000 persons had been trained in techno-entrepreneurship, while FIIRO has identified and put into consumption about 25 products from cassava.

She said with the research carried out and executed in line with the mandate of the institute in food and allied processing, packaging, pulp and paper, product design, fabrication of prototype equipment, about 50 patents have been obtained in their products, noting that if more attention was given to them, the nation would depend less on oil-dominated economy.

She expressed joy that the agency trained about 1,000 women in Minna, Niger State in local ‘Kwunu’ product.

Her words: ‘’We can sign Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to teach graduating students on entrepreneurship and cluster programmes; work with the local governments. If we work on these areas, the face of industrialization in Nigeria in less than 10 years is definitely going to change.’’

In his welcome address, FUTO vice chancellor, Prof. Francis Eze, represented by the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academic), Prof. Okoro Ogbogbe, said the challenges facing Nigeria in this period of recession required the need to diversify, regretting the fall in oil prices and insurgency in the North among others. He called on the conferees to recommend solution.

Director of the Institute of women, gender and development studies, FUTO, Dr. Chinyere Ada Madu, said the institute engaged a platform of knowledge generation, dissemination, research, exchange, practice and application on global issues with the goal of ‘’getting the global economy right for the betterment of humanity.”

She canvassed the need for policy makers to promote sustainable business practice and individuals to live within their means.