FG Doles out N70m to 56 Local Inventors
Dele Ogbodo in Abuja
The federal government yesterday rewarded Mr. Ezekiel Izuogu with N10 million and 55 other inventors with N60 million for their efforts in the manufacture of unique scientific inventions and innovations.
Presenting the cheques to the awardees in Abuja, the Minister of Science and Technology, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu said the grants arising from the result of the findings of the Presidential Study Committee on Inventions and Innovations (PSCII), was in line with the government’s resolve to encourage Nigerians making breakthroughs in new innovations, inventions and creativity for national development.
Onu admitted that creativity, inventions, and innovations are all critical factors in sustainable national growth and development, stating that this was the reason the PSCII was set up by former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
The committee was inaugurated by the then Minister of Science and Technology 10 years ago.
The objective of the grant, the minister said, is to enable local inventors improve and mass-produce their inventions for use in Nigeria as well as for export to the international market.
He said: “Since the inception of this programme in 2005, 188 Nigerians across the six geopolitical zones have benefitted from it, after satisfying the selection process.
“Over 400 interested inventors and entrepreneurs submitted applications which were thoroughly scrutinised by the committee and 56 Nigerians were selected after authenticating their claims.”
He further tasked the inventors to use the grant to improve, mass-produce and commercialise their products where necessary, and to register their patents.
The minister said by embarking on the endeavour, their successes will lead to the development of small and medium scale enterprises which will in turn lead to wealth and job creation.
In his remarks, Izuogu, who invented a perpetual emission machine known as the Imagneto Dynamics Machine, said science, technology and innovation remain the main drivers of Nigeria’s development.
“I made painstaking research on alternative energy when we embarked on the project, applying scientific knowledge to build the perpetual emission machine and that is what we have built and we are the first in the world to manufacture this.
“Government and the organised private sector must not underrate Nigerians, the inventors here today are gifted and creative thinking people.
“When commercialised, it means Nigeria now have an engine that can power a car for 50 years without fuel or oil. It can also power an airplane to fly to London at less than one-tenth the price because you will not be buying fuel. It can also power a bus and can power a whole lot of other things,” he said.
