Bindir says Nigeria made progress in technology

Umar Bindir

The Chief Executive Officer, National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion (NOTAP), Dr. Umar B. Bindir, has said that Africa and Nigeria particularly has made some progress technologically in recent years.

Reacting to a recent challenge by retired General Ishola Williams on the need for “Extra Income Generation Options for Scientists” Dr. Bindir said that continent-wide and Nigeria precisely “We are making progress.”

On Nobel Prize winners, he said that after careful check, Africa has them of which Prof. Wole Soyinka is one of them, and there are some Egyptians too.

Citing instances of technology progress, the NOTAP boss said that Malawi is now maize sufficient even as Nigeria has created and commercialised the NICOSAN - a new sickle cell drug developed in 

Nigeria aka Niprisan; whereas South Africa has many technology prowess.

Kenya, he noted, ‘invented’ the phone banking and is working, just as was seen recently, Uganda has launched a viable environmentally friendly two-seater vehicle as well as some progress made in the Gambia under the leadership of Dr. Yahya Jammeh.

He agreed that as a continent, Africa needed to look inwards and focused as well as collaborate.

“Yes, we need more and we need to look inwards, be more focused, and synergise. Asia or no Asia, Africa must evolve its own models, and I think we are making progress,” he declared.

He wondered why some people do claim that India or China does not have problems?

As said by him, the difference here is that they dwell more on their successes and made all think that all is Uhuru there, while Africans instead of looking of success stories and projecting it concentrate their energies on the negative aspect.

“We always dwell more on the negative, portraying that nothing is happening,” he lamented, stressing that this is not necessarily true.

He, therefore, urged Africans and Nigerians to promote deeper and more intensely their own success story.

Remmy Nweke
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