Sunday Akpan: Permsec on mission to reinvigorate Science and Technology sector in Nigeria

The civil service of a country is regarded as the engine room of the country’s beaucratic growth and developments. One of the stars produced by the civil service helping President Muhammasu Buhari to actualise the vision of the president in this regard is Akpan Sunday Edet, presently the Permanent Secretary of the country’s Ministry of Science and Technology.

Since his redeployment from the Ministry of Mines and Steel to the Ministry of Science and Technology, he has shown beyond all reasonable doubt that Mr. President has really appointed a square peg in a square hole to lead the Science and Technology Ministry.

This is so because of the important role the science and technology sector plays in the development of modern economics of the world.

Sunday Edet Akpan, has brought seriousness to bear on delivering on the mandate given to him by the President, during his swearing in as the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry.

Since his appointment and deployment to the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Permanent Secretary has supported the Minister in creating a vision, mission and road map for the science and technology sectors of Nigeria.

This mission and vision is the acceleration of the nation’s economy through science and technology. Knowledge based economic growth and prosperity based on Science and Technology with local industries that creates products and services with higher added value that are competitive in the local and foreign markets and generate higher paid jobs and academic environment that will continue to build highly qualified human capital needed for sustainable economic growth and developments driven by Science, Technology and innovations.

This is the vision and mission of the permanent secretary of the Ministry of Science and Technology, Mr Sunday Akpan Edet.

The vision and mission of the permanent secretary, has the following objectives:
To accelerate the transition to a knowledge based economy and rapid economic growth through science and technology.The vision and mission was created to help build mutually beneficial joint cooperation between scientific and industrial circles through which local industries to increase the share of hitech exports to create opportunities for high paid jobs and encourage development of higher qualified human capital neccessary for sustainable economic growth based on Science, Technology and Innovations.

To encourage the wider application of model for protection of intellectual properties in Nigeria, protecting research based on clear guidelines on ownership of IPRs and balanced sharing of revenues from royalties, while protecting the rights of team of inventors, scientific researchers rights.

To encourage collaborative research by directing financial resources from industry to the creation of project consortia between industry and research institution to orient research to market demand.

To promote significant scientific and research potential of Nigeria, ignored by local industry which has not benefitted from it in order to move up the international value chain based on business activities, intensive knowledge and generating higher added value.

To introduce a transparent and effective system of research funding mechanism for the involvement of industrial entrerprise in the process of directing research and in the applied and fundamental sciences with the aim of sciences to offer scientific and technological solutions to help industrial enterprises.

To assist local industries at the discretion of unique advantages and potential that they have to market to identify scientific and technological solutions in developing new products or services that will help business climb up the value chain in the markets in which they operate and create new markets niches based on innovative products or services developed in conjunction with scientists and researchers.

The aggressive investments being witnessed in the science and technology sector of the economy is due to the unrelenting efforts of the permanent secretary.The policies of this administration on Science and Technology which is being implemented deligently today is due to the beareaucratic know how of the permanent secretary, Mr Sunday Akpan Edet.

The difference in the administrative style of Sunday Akpan Edet is his usage of scientific indicators in policy formulation in the science and tech.sector. The attainment of development goals required a painstaking process of policy formulation based on scientific evidence based on derivable evidence.

Today in Nigeria there is no gap between policies and development priorities as most policies are based on available facts because they are available and reliable.

The Ministry under Sunday Edet Akpan now uses a system analysis framework in its policies formulation processes. The important role played by the STI indicators in providing scientific evidences for designing, formulating and implementing National innovation policy. This can serve as a framework for utilising scientific evidences in policy making in developing country’s context. Thanks to Sunday Akpan Edet.

Today, Sunday Akpan is awarded the permanent secretary of the year by a northern group because of the powerful reforms he introduced at the ministry and the people are acknowledging the fact that this reform is changing the science and technology sector of Nigeria.

Musa Wada writes from Abuja, Nigeria and can be reached on muswady7424@gmail.com