Varsity Dons Converge on Abuja, Canvass Establishment of Research Council

•As Gates Foundation supports push with $4.7m

Kuni Tyessi in Abuja

Nigerian professors have unanimously called on the federal government to establish a National Research Council that will be solely responsible for the production of quality journals to meet global index amongst other benefits.

Speaking yesterday at the commencement of the 4-day programme being organized by the African Population and Health Research Centre, and in collaboration with the Committee of Vice Chancellors of Nigerian Universities, CVCNU, immediate past secretary-general, Prof. Yakubu Ochefu, said the government has not been doing well and the establishment of the council will be a global best practice that will serve in the solution of the country’s myriad challenges.

Reiterating that certain percentage of Nigeria’s GDP should be allocated to promoting research, he said NGOs, secondary schools and even individuals can do research against widely erroneous perceptions.

According to him, “The government can do better. They are definitely not doing enough, because globally, a percentage of the GDP is to be set aside for research. So, they are not voting enough for it.

“They are also not properly focused on the research as it is only focused on tertiary institutions and that’s not how it is supposed to be. NGOs, secondary schools and even individuals can do research.

“The best practice is for the nation to have a national research council so that anybody with an idea can key into it, go through the process and when qualified, can go for it. That’s the global standard, and that’s what we’re pushing for”.

In his submission, Pro-chancellor and chairman of Council of the Bingham University, Prof. Andrew Haruna, said research is expected to be a national entity and a government agenda as practiced globally.

He noted that Nigerians are too much in a hurry and research takes time to materialize, adding that people see research as an activity that must produce immediate results.

It requires consistency, determination and resilience. You also have to build on what others have built and not to destroy, he stated.

While also calling for the certification on how research funds should be managed, Haruna said despite TETFund’s intervention, the federal government needs to learn from other countries, noting that research is very expensive and spending between 5-10 billon naira on research and popularizing it to make it look noble is not good enough.

He said: “What is the government doing as far as promoting research that solves Nigeria’s, Africa’s and global problems are concerned?

“Money is being pumped into the issue and it is not only the problem, even though not enough. The nature, character, structure of the process is also not enough, and the management of funds as far as research is concerned is also a critical issue.

“That’s why we are going for certification on how to manage research funds.

“If you say TETFund is spending much on research, that’s true; but ask other countries how much they’re investing on research. Research is very expensive and we can’t spend 5-10 billon on research and popularize it and make it look like we have done enough.”

Meanwhile, the sum of $4.7m from the Gates Foundation was used in organizing and pushing the programme and with three pilot states which includes Nigeria, Kenya and Ethiopia.

Programme Director at African Population and Health Research Centre, Dr. Alphonsus Neba, who revealed the sum, said the motive and partnership is to show Nigerian universities how to make up good financial grant standards, and how to apply and receive grants and manage them effectively and efficiently in order to reduce wastage and leakages as far as the grants are concerned.

He said: “It is to strengthen the quality of Nigerian journals so that they can be qualitative to the extent that they can be indeed in global indeed services and the global scientific community.

“The sum of $4.7m from the Gates Foundation was used in organizing and pushing for this programme and with three pilot states which includes Nigeria, Kenya and Ethiopia.”