FG Approves N8.5bn for Research, Vaccine Production

Kuni Tyessi in Abuja

The federal government has approved the sum of N8.5 billion for research in medicine, particularly vaccine production and other areas, for 2021, under the National Research Fund (NRF) scheme funded by the Tertiary Education Trust (TETFund).

The Executive Secretary of TETFund, Prof Suleiman Bogoro, disclosed this yesterday at a three-day workshop for directors of Research and Development of public universities in Nigeria held at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Training Institute in Abuja.

Bogoro said: “With your support, I made a case to the board of trustees to increase the NRF research grants. Initially we had seed money of N3 billion, and it was exhausted, so N1billion was added between 2016 and 2019.

“But when I came in, I decided to revolutionise it, and I have stated that it is not a question of seed money-let it be annual money. And that is why I made a case for N5 billion in 2019. In 2020, we raised it to N7.5 billion.

“This year, the president has approved another N7.5 billon, but with the additional N1 billion, we intend to do a ground breaking in respect of the COVID-19 challenge.”

Bogoro, however, decried the failure of research institutes to have the appetite to establish a good relationship with universities for the purpose of promoting research and development, stating that universities are also guilty of disregarding them.

He stressed the need for collaboration between the universities and research institutes to know what the institutes are doing, and offer assistance where necessary.

While urging participants at the workshop to take the initiative of looking at why kidnapping has become so lucrative, the TETfund boss lamented that young engineers and technology experts were rather deploying their expertise to aid the growing wave of abductions across the country.

Also, he challenged university professors not to only parade titles, but to engage in problem-solving research that will change things for the good of the country.

Earlier, TETFund Director of Research and Development, Dr. Salisu Bakare, noted that universities are by nature problem-solvers, adding that when universities are not solving problems of the society, the question remains whether they are achieving their mandates.