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BoI, FIIR to boost economic growth with research

By BusinessNews Staff on September 17, 2015

The Bank of Industry says it will collaborate with the Federal Institute of Industrial Research to boost the level of industrial development in the country.

The Managing Director, BoI, Mr. Rasheed Olaoluwa, who said this in Abuja called for synergy between the private sector and research centers to enable the country harness its economic potential.

Olaoluwa, who spoke as a guest at the Nigeria Society of Engineers Council meeting, noted that while some of the nation’s research institutes had developed a number of new technologies, it was worrisome that they had not been connected to the markets where they were mostly needed.

He said, “I visited the FIIR and was positively surprised that they have developed over 50 technologies that this government can leverage on to advance our agro-processing sector.

“What we have agreed with the agency is that we will support SMEs that want to use the FIIR technology. And we have entered into partnership that is working.”

“There should really be partnership between the private sector and the nation’s research institutes so that they can leverage on what has been developed by research institutes.”

He stated that as part of the moves to encourage the linkage, BoI had struck a deal with the Federal a Institute of Industrial Research to fund any Small and Medium Scale operator willing to leverage on its innovations for business concern.

According to him, in order to facilitate the conversion of some of these new technologies into bankable projects, research centres such as the FIIRO and the NASENI, must package products in a language that would be understood by the private sector operators

[Punch]

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