STI remains the driving force for nation-building, says Onu

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The Minister of Science, Technology, and Innovation, Dr Ogbonnaya Onu, has said that Science, Technology and Innovation remain the main driving force of growth and development in the nation.

Onu said this during the inauguration of the Inter-Ministerial Committee for Nigeria Science, Technology and Innovation Television (ScienceTV@NG) on Monday, in Abuja.

The minister said that the essence of the medium is to get Nigerians to appreciate the relevance and importance of STI to nation-building.

He added that this development can get Nigerians to advocate more for effective utilization of STI in making our country attain the level of greatness that we all desire.

According to the minister, the television programme will also cover every aspect of national life, which includes: Engineering, Health and Medicine, Natural Science, Environment and Wildlife, Science and Society, Agriculture and Children Curiosity among others.

Onu also said that the Television Programme will also focus on Nigeria’s contribution to STI by publishing the latest outputs and products from all research institutions and the latest STI developments from all over the world.

The Television programme will also showcase how our ancestors embrace science, technology and innovation in their daily activities by using locally available materials for their food, nutrition, drugs and medicine, the building of houses.

Onu, however, stressed the importance of knowing the past which will help our youths to be more creative, inventive and innovative and also help prepare their future to be bright and promising.

He urged the Committee to work conscientiously to achieve all the set objectives.

Earlier, the Permanent Secretary, Mr Edet Sunday Akpan, and chairman of the committee gave the composition of members to include: Federal Ministry of Education, Environment, Communication and Digital Technology amongst others.

He also gave the terms of reference of the committee as follows: To create a framework for content development and production; Develop the functions/ mandates of Science TV@NG; To develop different concept notes and business plans for the science television; Define the objectives of the scienceTV@NG and Propose the special vehicle for the ScienceTV@NG