Legislature
Akpabio, Dandutse, Benson Back Science University to Boost Nigeria’s Technological Growth
By Bashir Meyere
The Senate has expressed its commitment to boosting scientific and technological knowledge in the country for sustainable development.
The President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, gave this assurance while declaring open a one-day public hearing on the establishment of the Federal University of Science and Technology, Okorokorie, in Bayelsa State.
Akpabio, represented by the Deputy Minority Leader, Senator Ibrahim Khalid, representing Kaduna North, said the true wealth of a country is not measured by its natural resources, territory or treasury, but by the knowledge of its people, the ingenuity of its scientists, the creativity of innovators and the opportunities it provides for succeeding generations.
He said that for decades, the Niger Delta had contributed immensely to Nigeria’s economic development, adding that its resources had powered industries, financed infrastructure and sustained the national economy.
He argued, however, that the greatest resource of the Niger Delta is not the oil beneath its soil, but the intelligence of its children, the enterprise of its young people and the immense human potential waiting to be developed.
Akpabio further said that the public hearing on the proposed Federal University of Science and Technology, Okorokorie, Bayelsa State, therefore, carried significance beyond one community or state.
He said it invited stakeholders to consider how education could become an instrument of national transformation, how science could strengthen economic independence, and how technology could equip young people not merely to participate in the future, but to shape it.
He noted that the nations commanding the greatest influence today were not necessarily those with the largest deposits of petroleum or minerals, but those that had consistently invested in human development.
The Senate President also said stakeholders must consider how the proposed institution could be sustainably funded, properly equipped, competently administered and positioned to address Nigeria’s scientific and technological challenges.
Welcoming the initiative, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Tertiary Institutions and TETFund, Senator Muntari Muhammad Dandutse, explained that the public hearing was a vital part of the legislative process.
He said it provided an open and inclusive platform for stakeholders, government agencies, host communities, academic institutions, professional bodies, civil society organisations, students and the general public to make important contributions that would strengthen the bill before its final consideration by the National Assembly.
Also speaking, the sponsor of the bill, Senator Konbowei Benson, emphasised the need to ensure an adequate supply of manpower, particularly in science and technology.
He said that achieving this required the establishment of institutions that would provide the needed manpower.
According to him, the establishment of the university would enable young people to pursue courses that would give meaning to their existence and contribute to sustainable development in the country.
He, however, thanked the chairman and members of the committee, stakeholders and civil society organisations, expressing hope that the bill would receive favourable consideration and speedy passage.
