In a bid to drive economic growth, innovation, and technological advancement, the National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion (NOTAP) has launched Project NOVA, a groundbreaking initiative aimed at increasing inventive and innovative skills and accelerating Nigeria’s outsourcing capabilities. Nigerian Outsourcing Value Acceleration (Project NOVA) promises to revolutionize the country’s technology landscape and unlock its vast potential, especially in the area of information and communications technology (ICT), with emphasis on software development.
Technology has made the world a global village, and the advancement and penetration of information and communication technology in the continent of Africa and in particular, Nigerian rural areas, have made it even more imperative to ensure a more pragmatic and systematic approach towards indigenous skills development.
NOTAP is an agency of government, saddled with the responsibility of regulating the inflow of foreign technologies into the country through the registration of technology transfer agreements, but also has the responsibility to encourage efficient development and domestication of locally motivated technologies. This is to ensure the fast-tracking of the nation’s technological and economic advancement in the comity of nations.
The Office has been strategic in executing these responsibilities to ensure critical skills acquisition and development and overall growth of science, technology, and innovation for speedy industrialization of the country. This is the step that the developed countries took to become technology giants and critical service providers in the area of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM).
In line with NOTAP’s drive for technology domestication, Project NOVA is a strategic initiative designed to groom Nigerian youths in cutting-edge technologies, equipping them with the skills required to compete in the global technology market and increase their relevance in the outsourcing industry.
By bridging the gap between academia and industry, Project NOVA aims to create a pool of talented professionals who are capable of developing indigenous technology to curb overdependence on foreign technologies as well as grow the propensity to deliver high-quality services to clients worldwide.
If well-implemented, Project NOVA can have a transformative impact on Nigeria’s economy and technology sector and numerous other potential benefits such as job creation and foreign exchange earnings. Project NOVA can create thousands of jobs for Nigerian youths, hence reducing unemployment rates and providing opportunities for economic empowerment.
Nigeria has long depended on imported technologies, thereby causing depletion of foreign reserves and putting pressure on the local currency. However, when critical skills are developed to the point of outsourcing, it attracts foreign exchange earnings. By delivering high-quality outsourcing services to global clients, Nigeria can earn significant foreign exchange, boosting its economy and improving its balance of payments.
This initiative tends to create technological advancement and increase the nation’s competitiveness, drive innovation and technological growth in Nigeria, positioning the country as a hub for outsourcing and technology-driven service providers in Africa.
Knowledge institutions across the Western world have established technology and incubation hubs to groom highly skilled manpower that has become a source of technology supply chain, especially to third-world countries. NOTAP is standing as those technology giants in Africa to not only develop critical knowledge workers for African consumption but also to be a major player in the technology outsourcing ecosystem.
Africa and Nigeria, in particular, have become a technology dumping ground for foreign technology providers, but Project NOVA, by bringing cutting-edge skills and expertise, will enable Nigerian professionals to compete effectively in the global outsourcing market, enhancing the country’s reputation and increasing its competitive value.
Nigeria has depended on oil as its major source of economic sustainability for a long time. This has significantly affected the technological growth and global competitiveness of the country, but with the Project NOVA initiative, there will be economic diversification through the development of other critical sectors. This will therefore ensure the avoidance of the negative effect of oil price vulnerability with a severe impact on Nigeria’s revenue and economy.
Project NOVA can contribute to Nigeria’s economic diversification efforts, reducing the country’s dependence on oil revenue and promoting sustainable economic growth. During the launching of Project NOVA recently at the Hall 16, Yar’adua Way, Victoria Island, Lagos, the former Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Innovation, Science, and Technology, Mrs. Esuabana Nko-Asanye, said that Project NOVA would scale up youth skill acquisition and push the country towards speedy industrialization. She stated that NOTAP’s efforts at developing Nigeria’s science, technology, and innovation ecosystem through its programs and projects are yielding positive results.
Asanye observed that when NOTAP, as a regulatory body, noticed weak research infrastructure in Nigerian knowledge establishments, the Office initiated the NOTAP-Industry Research Laboratory Upgrade (NIRLUP) scheme to upgrade selected laboratories in the country’s tertiary institutions.
She said that the major goal of the scheme was to engender research collaboration between the beneficiary institutions and multinationals while providing adequate laboratory facilities required to carry out research locally. The former Permanent Secretary commended NOTAP for being at the forefront of Nigeria’s technology development. She said that the ministry is pleased with the various developmental programs and projects of the Office and will continue to support the successful implementation of the programs.
She added that the success of Project NOVA remains critical to the ministry, as the project is capable of springing up many other projects and services that can propel the country in the comity of nations. She added that the project is in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of the present administration and the local content policy aimed at increasing the value of indigenous skills.
Also speaking during the launching, the Director-General and Chief Executive Officer of NOTAP, Dr. Obiageli Amadiobi, said that over the years, NOTAP had observed an increasing demand for foreign technologies by Nigerians, even when the capacity to develop such technologies abounds locally. She said that while the unfortunate and unacceptable situation is partly attributable to the weak research infrastructure within Nigeria’s national innovation system, the weak chain of transition from innovation to the commercialization stage is also a major factor.
She said that the Office is playing a leading role in the fight for Nigeria’s technological self-reliance, adding that Project NOVA is a flagship project, dear to her heart, aimed at bringing industry experts, academia, and technology-savvy Nigerians under one roof to groom them to become technology experts and service providers for the benefit of the country and for the purposes of outsourcing.
The Director-General emphasized that Project NOVA is the Nigerian Outsourcing and Value Acceleration scheme targeted at developing a mass of critical skilled manpower in various sectors of the Nigerian economy to ensure that Nigeria not only attains technological independence but also outsources critical skills for the economic posterity of the nation.
She said that awareness of Project NOVA among Nigerian youths as well as industry experts who will provide the technical know-how is ongoing. She added that the country will soon experience an upsurge in outsourcing of technical skills and put a stop to over reliance on imported foreign technologies to safe our indigenous capabilities.
Project NOVA has the potential to unlock Nigeria’s vast potential, driving economic growth, innovation, and technological advancement. With effective implementation, this initiative can create jobs, generate foreign exchange, drive technological advancements, enhance competitiveness, and contribute to economic diversification. As NOTAP continues to drive this initiative forward, it is essential for stakeholders to collaborate and ensure the project’s success.
