Published By News Editor
Chairman Advisory Board for the Nigeria Prize for Science instituted by the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Prof Barth Nnaji has said.
Speaking on Arise Television on Friday, Prof Nnaji, who was also a former Minister of Power, and Founder/Chairman of Geometric Power, said the winner, who could be individual or group of scientists will receive $100,000 in award prize.
This year’s competition according to him is open to scientists worldwide who are involved in the application of science to proffer innovations in sustainable food security.
Prof Nnaji, said the idea is to return scientists to the basics of embracing basic research which could be turned into commercial tools if it adds to the quality of lives of the people.
He said the award this year is not limited to local scientists, but seeks to attract scientists world over whose research works have proved to be of immeasurable impact on people and could assist in fostering food security.
He said: “The award is opened for scientists, innovators and researchers, to show their capacity. No prize was awarded last year and year before the last, and this speaks to the very high bar we have set for the awards, which must be met by either a group of scientists or individual wishing to apply for the award.
“The group or the individual should be able to have developed the innovation to a point that we can say could be beneficial to the society because if it doesn’t have impact, it doesn’t have meaning and it is very important that we understand that the product must have real meaning on the people, if it doesn’t and there is no way to demonstrate it, then they cannot win the prize. There are people who have achieved narrow success, in research but it is very narrow and does not have demonstrative indications that it can impact the lives of our people so we don’t recognize such. In the last year’s competition, there was no such competitors that have shown what we are looking for.”
Nnaji who also commented on the nation’s continued energy crisis, said Nigerians must ask questions from those who implemented the energy reform and privatization whether those national assets were sold to those who have financial as well as technical capacities for the assets they were taking over.
He explained that since the whole essence of privatization was primed on financial and technical capacities, it would fail if one of the determinants is not met. Citing the experience with the Geometric Power which he founded, Nnaji said for every dollar worth of asset the firm bought, they have invested eight dollars and taday have built a sprawling Integrated Power Project that has not only developed a reliable feedstock and gas pipeline which guarantees stable fuel to generate, but has also been able to metre all its customers to generate the trust and reliability that the sector needed to thrive.
Excerpt of the interview:
What is the whole essence of the NLNG award which this year has focused on scientific innovations that would guarantee food security?
What we are looking at is innovations in food security. What are those things that could enable the country have sustainable food security? For example if you produce a perishable item like Tomato, how can these be preserved without they wasting.? If there is a way we can preserve this it would go a long way in ensuring food security. That is sustainability. How do you transport these products from varous parts of the country in such a way that would not perish? What are the new products that we can have in agriculture that we can introduce to complement what we are currently doing for crop and animal products? These are the sort of things that we are looking at in the NLNG Award for Science this year.
The award is opened for scientists, innovators and researchers, to show their capacity. No prize was awarded last year and year before the last, and this speaks to the very high bar we have set for the awards, which must be met by either a group of scientists or individual wishing to apply for the award.
The group or the individual should be able to have developed the innovation to a point that we can say could be beneficial to the society because if it doesn’t have impact, it doesn’t have meaning and it is very important that we understand that the product must have real meaning on the people, if it doesn’t and there is no way to demonstrate it, then they cannot win the prize. There are people who have achieved narrow success, in research but it is very narrow and does not have demonstrative indications that it can impact the lives of our people so we don’t recognise such. In the last year’s competition, there was no such competitor that has shown what we are looking for.
How can we use this sort of platforms to have more Bath Nnaji on the Nigerian science and esearch space?
Actually, you are correct that you need something that people can look forward to as a spring board, something that young people should be able to say this person or this group won this prize. It could be in energy, it could be in agriculture, transportation, or any other field. We are not limiting ourselves to any area. Research is research, our people don’t pursue basic research as such even academicians go to the universities only to earn posts they don’t want to do research. I come from environment here I like to be in the trenches, I don’t want to be in the limelight or university administrator, but I like to basic research and that led me to where I am and so when I was minister of science and technology, what I said is how can I get my country to understand that when yu go from basic research you go to technology, and them from technology, you have commercial products and commercial product have imact in the lives of our people. That’s really what it is supposed to be. So what NLNG has done is to say let us put up this prize and it is a beacon. $100,000 is big enough in any envornment to anyone who can do research that has impact in the lives of the people, you can win this prize. One other thing they are doing quietly is to support research laboratories in universities to encourage scientists in universities to be able to produce these sort of research knowing fully well that we have not gotten thi sort of support from the government to produce innovations. They are also doing that but quietly.
On power, how can Nigeria get it right. Today, the Minister of Power was saying we don’t have enough electricity because it is dry season and all of that, as an investor in IPP in Abai State, what exactly do you think has gone wrong in our efforts to privatize the power sector?
In terms of what we have built in Aba, what we have is an integrated power project of which Independent Power Plant is part of. As a matter of fact we have the feedstock, that is the fuelstock, we have a gas pipeline to supply to the power plant , because you need to have reliable fuel supply, we also have improved distribution infrastructure, it is critical that you have that, and the collection efficiency. What the electricity reform is out to achieve is to ensure that we achieve production increase and the bidding done was not to the highest bidder for the asset itself. The asset has a fixed value and everybody would buy the bidding was on reduction of losses, with means you have to invest massicely in the infrastructure that you are taking over which is clearly dilapidated all over the country. So you have to have financial capacity as well as technical capacity. The whole essence of privatization was the need to have both capacities. If you missed that you’ve missed the whole essence and as you know, I left before the privatization was concluded. That was what went wrong with the privaitisation of the energy sector. The question Nigerians should ask is did those who took over have financial as well as technical capacity for the asset they bought. Take for instance in Aba, we have invested massively on infrastructure such that for each dollar value of the asset that we took over, we ve invested more than eight dollars. So what you have to check is those who took over those assets, how much have they spent to improve the assets. Before you begin to talk about reduction of osses you need to have investment in the power infrastructure, you need to have investment in the collection system, you need to have metres. The metre is the bond of agreement between the consumer and the supplier of electricity it is a very simple calculus because if you don’t have metres you would be doing estimated billings and you are going to be arguing with your customers. We have done that and we doing that in Aba. That is what is required and that is what is what should be done nationwide.