The Bank of Industry has assured prospective users of indigenous industrial research products of the bank’s funding support, in order to encourage the vital linkage between research and industrial development.
The Managing Director/Chief Executive of BoI, Rasheed Olaoluwa, who made the promise during his visit to the Federal Institute of Industrial Research, Oshodi, in Lagos, stressed that there was a need to create an ecosystem that will function towards industrialising the country.
He remarked that the leading development finance institution in Nigeria had a similar mandate to that of the research institute in enhancing economic development hence the need to streamline activities between both that will engender growth for the country through industrialisation.
The BoI boss observed that at 6.8 per cent, the contribution of the manufacturing sector to Nigeria’s GDP was low, emphasising that “we need to find home grown solution to our economic growth.”
“Rather than appeal to industrialists to utilise FIIRO’s inventions, we will support those who come to take up equipment from FIIRO,” he said.
He disclosed that the bank was in the process of procuring the services of professional Business Support Service Providers, BSSP and urged FIIRO to key into the initiative in order to help prospective loan seekers acquire information and develop bankable applications.
With the Federal Government’s foreign direct investment drive, the BoI boss noted that it was important for FIIRO to make technology less expensive to help SMEs compete favourably.
“One of our key strategic development initiatives is to pursue linkages between industrialists and centres of innovative development solutions that can produce indigenous and low cost technology that would help accelerate growth industrially,” he said.
He pointed out that in every state of the country, Nigeria has at least one agricultural product that can be focused on for commercial and industrial development and that industrialisation based on agriculture will make a lot of impact on the population.
“Recently President Goodluck Jonathan launched the Nigerian Industrial Revolution Plan NIRP, the document identifies four key sectors of Nigeria’s comparative advantage and one of them is agricultural processing which FIIRO has an edge in helping to accelerate development in that sector,” he said.
He said that the bank and FIIRO were in alignment in helping to create jobs and assured the researchers of BoI’s support in terms of collaboration; informing and sensitising Nigerians; the promotion of developed technology through exhibition and other avenues to ensure their visibility and availability.
“It is essential to build capacity for accredited equipment fabricators to improve our local technology by making it more effective, attractive and low cost in order to also encourage the youths to participate in Nigeria’s industrial revolution in this digital age,” he said.
In her presentation, the Director General/Chief Executive of FIIRO, Dr. Gloria Elemo, affirmed that the institute was indeed relevant in its developmental contributions to the agro-allied, agro-processing and minerals sector of the economy and home for industrial technology for the MSME sector.
“The institute has contributed through processing of local raw materials and the production of indigenous technology to the growth of SMEs in the country and have conducted researches into all the natural agro and mineral based resources of the country,” she said.
She noted that the strategic partnership between FIIRO and BoI will continue to have an unprecedented impact on Nigeria’s industrial landscape.
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