For the second time in five years, the Nigerian Senate has passed the National Research and Innovation Council (NRIC) Establishment Bill.
The Bill, sponsored by Senator Frank Ibezim, was passed on 21st February 2023, 13 months after the Public Hearing on the Bill took place on 17th February 2022.
The Bill was passed by the Red Chamber along with the Nigerian Building and Road Research Institute (NBRRI) Bill 2023, after the presentation and consideration of the reports of the Senate Committee on Science and Technology.
According to National Assembly sources, the Bill will now go to the House of Representatives for concurrence before being transmitted to Mr. President for assent and it is expected that the whole process will be concluded before the end of the tenure of the President Muhammadu Buhari Administration.
When eventually the NRIC Bill receives Presidential assent and the Council becomes reality, it will be a dream come true for the advocacy for institutionalized funding mechanism for research in Nigeria.
It is generally believed that what the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) is to tertiary institutes sector is what NRIC will represent to the Research and Development Institutes (RDIs) sector.
NRIC is a component of the National Policy on Science, Technology and Innovation (NPSTI), which states in Section 4: “For the Policy to achieve the desired impact, there is need to institute and evolve reliable and sustainable funding frameworks from government, private sector and development partners so as to ensure adequate funding for ST&I infrastructure and activities for sustainable development.”
seeking their support for the Bill.