Obinna Odogwu, Abakaliki
If the Technology Incubation Centre (TIC) under construction by the federal government at Izzi, Ebonyi State will not go the way of several other infrastructures abandoned to rot in parts of the country despite taxpayers’ money going down the drain, in few years, the state may become a hub for technology research and development.
This emergent TIC facility, Daily Sun was told will upon completion, house 36 technology incubation units and six laboratories.
Other facilities that would be housed there include the administrative block designed to contain meeting rooms, server room, display centres, library, conference room as well as workshops, and packaging units.
The centre, according to the Director-General, National Board for Technology Incubation (NBTI), an agency of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology, Dr Mohammed Jibrin, would gulp a total of N500 million.
Speaking at the premises of the TIC during an inspection visit by the former Minister of Science and Technology, Dr Ogbonnaya Onu, shortly before President Muhammadu Buhari dissolved his cabinet, Jibrin listed the many benefits the centre would bring when it commences operation.
Jibrin explained thus: “As you can see, we have quite a number of universities and research institutions, whose primary functions, among others, are to coordinate teaching and research as well as downstream activities such as the commercialization of the research.
“You can see quite a number of graduates coming out without really utilizing what they have learnt in the school in form of business plans that can be used as meal tickets.
“You can see the country importing a number of things that are a product of research and development from institutions that are foreign but here in Nigeria, ours are lying on the shelves.
“For that reason, the government provided what we call the technology incubation centres where start-ups and businesses that are arising from researches from the universities are converted into knowledgeable, sustainable enterprises that are capable of creating jobs, wealth, and reducing poverty in the country.
“For this reason, we have been able to establish technology incubation centres in all the states of the federation with Ebonyi State coming into being now. Indeed, Ebonyi State is one of the fortunate states that are having two.
“The extension office is at Abakaliki while the main office is here in Izzi. We have been able to complete the renovation work at the extension office which is a smaller office while a virgin land in Izzi community is being considered for the establishment of the larger centre.
“The centre in Abakaliki has already taken off and this one, as soon as budgetary allocations are made, within three months, we should be talking about commissioning the project.”
In his welcome speech, State Coordinator of Buhari Support Organization (BSO), Chief Austin Edeze, applauded the President for his “developmental strides” especially for the project being sited in his community.
He also praised Onu for his visionary leadership which, he said, led to the birth of the technology incubation centre. He promised that his people would provide every needed support within their powers to ensure that the project was completed.
Also speaking, Onu said: “We decided to bring the best to Izzi land. If you go round Nigeria, you will see retired senior civil servants; people who have held very important positions in the military, in the academia; they all come to get the technology transferred to them through the NBTI.
“All these TICs that you hear of, they are technology incubation centres; these are places that people who now want to be entrepreneurs; people who want to start micro, small and medium enterprises come to and then, using the NBTI, we now give them the appropriate technology for them to produce the products of interests.
“So, in essence, this very important TIC which is the one for Ebonyi State will play important role and it will change the character of this community of Izzi and our state. People will come from every part of the state to learn here. So, I am very happy for this”.