The National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) has held talks with Iwemi, an academic publishing and research platform owned by Retail Development and Investment Company (RDIC Africa), on how to preserve and convert the research output of Nigeria’s polytechnics and technical colleges into innovation, enterprises, and employable skills.

The meeting took place at the NBTE headquarters in Abuja when a delegation from Iwemi paid a courtesy visit to the Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer of the Board, Professor Idris Bugaje.
The delegation was led by the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Iwemi, Mr Ejimofor Akah. He was received by Bugaje alongside the Rector of Auchi Polytechnic and Chairman of the Committee of Federal Rectors, Dr. Salisu Umar, the National Coordinator of the Committee of States Commissioners of Education in Nigeria under the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, Dr Leo, and Deputy Director at NBTE, Dr Rabiat Bello.

Also on the Iwemi team were Mr Adesanya Ogunyemi, Regional Head of Wema Bank’s ALAT, and Ikay Aiyegbusi of Interswitch, who are payment and banking partners to the platform.
During the engagement, Akah presented the Iwemi Academic Publishing and Research Platform as a system designed to archive, publish and distribute academic work originating from polytechnics and technical institutions. He said the platform is currently live in five tertiary institutions, including Edo State Polytechnic, Usen, and hosts over 500,000 titles.
He outlined that the platform provides a hosted, institution-branded digital repository for National Diploma and Higher National Diploma projects, theses and academic records, intended to ensure that student research is preserved and accessible rather than stored physically and eventually discarded.

Akah said the platform also allows lecturers to publish technical and vocational education and training e-textbooks with digital rights management protection, with a royalty payment structure that pays within 48 hours. According to him, the system includes research indexing intended to make institutional research searchable internationally, which could affect institutional visibility and web ranking.
He added that the ecosystem includes a distance learning component through http://www.iwemischool.com for delivery of short courses and learning content, and that Iwemi provides training for librarians and information and communications technology officers, while bearing the cost of deployment in participating institutions.
Akah also informed the meeting that students and staff of polytechnics can participate in the Iwemi National Academic Research Impact Challenge (INARIC2026), which has a prize pool of N25 million, with its grand award ceremony scheduled for December 11, 2026, in Abuja.
Speaking at the meeting, Umar commended the platform, saying it offers polytechnics a locally developed channel for archiving and publishing their academic work, with implications for visibility and internally generated revenue.
Responding, Bugaje said the Board’s priority is to move technical and vocational research from research to innovation, and not stop at publication.

He said research outputs in the sector should lead to products, enterprises and skills that can be deployed in the economy, noting that skills development remains central to the mandate of NBTE.
Bugaje said platforms that are able to connect polytechnic research and practical training to industry requirements deserve consideration, particularly where they support the translation of knowledge into jobs.
Both parties agreed to continue engagement towards a formal partnership arrangement, beginning with a pilot phase among institutions to be nominated by NBTE.
Akah thanked the Executive Secretary and his team for receiving the delegation and reaffirmed the company’s commitment to working with Nigerian technical institutions to convert academic knowledge into employment and national wealth.