PSI urges establishment of research fund to boost economic growth

The Public Service International (PSI) has called for the establishment of research Fund by Nigeria with the sole aim of galvanizing resources for research efforts.

The President of PSI Africa, Peters Adeyemi, who stated this in interview with The Guardian in Abuja, explained that such Fund Such a body would participate in the monitoring and evaluation of research efforts for national growth.

He explained: “We have been calling for the establishing of a Fund that will focus sorely on the funding research efforts in the research institutions just the way Tetfund is established for the tertiary institutions. We said there is need to have special dedicated fund for research institutes so that they can provide grants to researchers to carry out research work. Such a body will also participate in the monitoring and evaluation of research efforts for national growth. Such efforts could also focus on particular areas of development that Nigerians can become global experts.”

He decried nonchalant attitude of the Federal Government to adequately fund research institutions which has created a choking atmosphere for research efforts to fester in the country.

“Government has not funded research institutes the way they ought to have been funded. Where atmosphere has not favoured researchers, there is no way we can get research works that will assist industries in a way that will boost the economic activities. We have canvassed over the years that there is the need for government to focus on research institutes so that the country can gain more from the result of research efforts,” he said.

Adeyemi, who is a deputy president of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), submitted that the allegation that the products of the research institutions are not useful is an imagined problem.

His words: “Prior to recent history, Nigerian universities did very well ranking among the very best. In fact, some of the products of our universities are making waves across the world. The reason they are not making waves here depends on how the researcher are used. We had brain drain syndrome that was inflicted by the rejection of our products by ourselves. Where the products are used, the researchers are poorly remunerated. These guys, out of rejection, then look outside of the country for greener pastures. As we speak, how many industries are there working at the pace they are supposed to work that would attract the best of brains and be able to remunerate scholars adequately? Because of high level of inconsistency policies that we have had to contend with, many industries in our country are going down, as they are going down, the connection between ivory towers and industry is also disappearing.”