Nigeria’s Federal Executive Council (FEC) on Wednesday approved a Science Technology and Innovation Roadmap that would drive the sector and address lapses from 2017 to 2030.
The roadmap is expected to boost Nigeria’s capacity to be the ninth largest economy by 2050 by purchasing power parity, the minister of science and technology, Ogbonaya Onu, told newsmen at the post-FEC briefing.
Council also approved the inclusion of National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members in the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), to reduce deaths resulting from lack of access to medical care.
Briefing alongside the ministers of health, Isaac Adewole, agriculture, Audu Ogbeh, and presidential spokesman, Femi Adesina, Onu said, “during the FEC meeting the ministry of Science and Technology presented a Science and Technology and Innovation roadmap for our country 2017 – 2030.
“We have been so worried that in our country, children and pupils in secondary and primary schools, many of them do not like to study Mathematics and Science subjects and that has been a worry to us as a nation.
“We see that our lack of interest in science and technology has resulted in, if we want to embark on major projects in the country like building a dam, a refinery or airport or seaport, we rely on foreign expertise.
“When it comes to Science and Technology many think that we cant do it, it has to be done from outside. This has created a lot of problems for us as a nation because when you import these things you also exporting jobs creating unemployment for our people and putting undue pressure on the currency and also aggravating poverty in the nation.
“We decided that this must change, that we must have a science technology roadmap that will take our people beyond where we are now, to prepare Nigeria to be truly great nation where we will have the capacity to use the natural resources we have to meet the needs we have as a nation so that we can become self reliant. That will give us self confidence, which we need to be a truly great nation.
“In this roadmap we started by letting our people know that we have a very rich Science and Technology heritage as a nation. In the roadmap we also identified all the things that we need to do to place Nigeria in a position that it should be.
“There are estimates that by 2050 Nigeria, by purchasing power parity will be the ninth largest economy in the world but we cannot get there without Science and Technology. In essence the difference between developed nations of the world that are the richest in the world and the developing countries that are poor, the main difference is Science and Technology and they how they apply it to nation building,” he explained.
On the inclusion of Corp members in the NHIS scheme, the health minister said the ministry presented a memorandum to council on the need to prevent unnecessary deaths of youth Corp members across the country.
“Council approved the memo that henceforth we will include NYSC members in the National Health Insurance Scheme across the country. This will guarantee access to quality care across the country, prevent unnecessary deaths and also ensure our youth corps members receive the highest attainable level of care across the country,” he said.
The approval is coming on the heels of calls by the public urging the government to make a conscious effort to see that the participants of the NYSC scheme are well protected and given the best of medical attention.
Last year, there were public outcry following the death of a corps member, Ifedolapo Oladepo, at the NYSC orientation camp in Kano, due to negligence after they thought she was faking sickness to avoid parade. Another first-class graduate of Petroleum Engineering from the University of Uyo, Ukeme Asuquo, was reported to have died at the NYSC camp in Zamfara State, in December last year, after suffering from diarrhoea.
Adewole said Council also received and approved a memo on the renewal of the Memorandum of Understanding between the federal ministry of health and the United Nations Fund for Population Activities (UNFPA).
The renewed MoU will last for three to four years (2017 to 2020). The ministry also presented a report on the state of public health services across to council in which it declared the Meningitis outbreak over in the country and also informed FEC that no new cases of Polio has been recorded in the country in 2017. “We have recorded seven new cases of Lassa fever across the country and the cholera outbreak in Kwara State has also fizzled out,” he said.
Elizabeth Archibong
