Nigeria’s newly appointed Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, Kingsley Tochukwu Udeh, has pledged to reposition the ministry as a key driver of the nation’s economic transformation and technological advancement.
Speaking shortly after assuming office, Udeh said Nigeria must take innovation, science and technology seriously if it is to rise among the world’s leading nations.
He assured Nigerians that the ministry would create opportunities for the youth to explore and harness their creativity, knowledge, and skills to solve national challenges.
“We understand that if we want to rise to be one of the leading nations of the world, we have to take innovation, science and technology seriously. And we have resolved that we will take innovation, science and technology seriously. We will not bear it as a relation, as a name.
“We will energise Nigerians, particularly our youth, to find and express their skills, their knowledge, their acumen in the area of innovation, science and technology. It will be innovation, science and technology that provide solutions that advance our progress and development, handle our security, and address even the hard-headed monster of insurgency and terrorism,” Udeh added.
The minister noted that the ministry’s leadership team has identified “quick wins” that would deliver tangible results in the short term.
Udeh emphasised that the ministry’s relevance would be measured by the positive impact it makes in the lives of Nigerians.
“We have agreed as a leadership that we will work as a team. We have agreed as a leadership that we will identify quick wins, which we have identified, and we will work through these quick wins so that we begin to make remarkable impacts from next week.
“We understand our role, and the promise that we made as leadership is that we will not let Nigerians down. So, work has started,” he affirmed.
