The Managing Director of ARCO Worldwide Services Limited, Engr. Okosubide Mozimo, has said that the ongoing Middle East conflict underscores the urgent need for Nigeria to adopt and deploy drone technology to strengthen national security and drive economic growth.

Speaking at the weekend in Abuja during the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between ARCO and the National Centre for Technology Management (NACETEM), Mozimo warned that modern conflicts, such as the ongoing hostilities between Israel and Iran, have shown that drones are now central to military operations.

The MoU was signed by Mozimo on behalf of ARCO and Director-General of NACETEM,
Dr. Olushola Odusanya, aims to foster collaboration in research, capacity building, and innovation in drone technology.

It also seeks to train young Nigerians in production, piloting, and maintenance of drones for sectors including security, agriculture, oil and gas, healthcare, and infrastructure monitoring.

Mozimo said drones have become very important and applicable in many areas and have become a major job creating innovation.

The ARCO boss said the on-going war between America, Israel and Iran has clearly shown how critical drones have come in modern warfare and that Nigeria could not afford to ignore the technology.

His words, “If you look at the war going on between America, Israel and Iran, if you look at 70 per cent of the equipment used, they have been drones, and they’ve been able to achieve very good results. And even from Iran to Israel and all the places they’ve attacked, drones have been put to use.

“So, I think Nigeria will need to catch up with the rest of the world. This MoU gives us a good opportunity to be able to develop capacity in the country that will see us compete with other nations across the world.

Mozimo revealed that ARCO Worldwide Services Limited pioneered commercial drone operations in Nigeria in 2016 and has remained in the leading position of drone technology, providing services for oil & gas and security the military, as well as, the training of drone pilots, in the country

Mozimo stressed that drones could significantly improve Nigeria’s internal security, particularly along high-risk highways such as Abuja-Kaduna and Lagos-Ibadan.

“We see kidnappings almost daily. Drones can help track movements in real time, identify threats, and allow rapid response. The benefits are enormous,” he added.

On his part, Director-General of NACETEM, Dr. Olushola Odusanya, said his organisation was prepared to see innovations in Science and Technology translate into tangible commercial products in the country and therefore impact on the Nigerian economy.

He noted, however that innovation thrives only when ecosystems have been built, and those ecosystems should use commercial products.

“The question, therefore, becomes, how come, despite all these investments, our recurrent expenditure, how come we are not getting the impact that other countries of the world have felt, and breaking it down into such simple terms, NACETEM is the agency whose function is to look at these”, he said.

The NACETEM boss disclosed that new technologies around Artificial Intelligence, ICT have been throwing up new opportunities and that the MoU with ARCO was an example of how new technologies could be utilised to the advantage of the Nigerian economy.

He argued that the promise to provide 50 million jobs by the government was achievable if the necessary attention was given to vocational education and kill acquisition.