By Sodeinde Temidayo David
As part of efforts to support research and development (R&D) in the oil and gas sector in the country, Dangote Group has announced a partnership with the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB).
The collaboration is through the multi-billion-dollar Dangote Refinery in Lagos and is mainly aimed at promoting the critical issue of the energy sector, which is the backbone of the nation’s economy.
It was gathered that Dangote Refinery is supporting the initiative via the sponsorship of the second edition of the NCDMB Research and Development Fair and Conference 2021 in a bid to show its commitment to the project.
Also, the company was able to showcase its 650,000 barrels per day project and the research and development activities it had carried out during the construction of the refinery at the fair.
This is coming after the NCDMB had commissioned a Technology Incubation and Innovation Center and formally launched the $50 million Nigerian Content Research and Development.
The Executive Secretary of NCDMB, Mr Simbi Wabote, who commended the company’s support for the fair, expressed the need for companies in the Nigeria oil and gas sector to start nurturing the growth of the country’s home-grown technology rather just being wholesome consumers of other people’s innovations.
Mr Wabote emphasised that research and development are pivotal to the growth and development of any nation and play a crucial role in opening new chapters of modern life.
“Analysis of global practices of Research and Development revealed that the combined R&D spend of just five countries makes up 63.5 per cent of the entire global R&D spend.
“These five countries, namely USA, China, Japan, Germany, and India were also observed to have accounted for over 50 per cent of the global Gross Domestic Product,” the NCDMB boss said.
He further expressed regret that African nations accounted for less than one per cent of the global R&D spend, and the continent’s aggregate GDP is only three per cent of the global GDP.
“Africa, on the other hand, accounted for less than one per cent of the global R&D spend while its GDP is only three per cent of the global GDP.”
According to the executive secretary, there is a nexus between the spending on Research and Development and economic prosperity.
Mr Wabote further disclosed that the board would soon embark on a roadshow to showcase its research and development initiatives to the various stakeholder groups, including universities in the country which represent a key constituency.
He also called on industry stakeholders and youths across the country to take advantage of the NCDMB R&D centre to support the adaptation of existing solutions and also come up with new ones to address major challenges in the industry.
