L-R: Consultant to PICTT, Musa Ali Baba; Project Coordinator, Olamide Apejoye; Project Judge, Chief Tunde Rahman(Senior Special Assistant to President Bola Tinubu on Media Special Duties); Chairman of PICTT, Dr. Mohammed Dahiru; MIT Solve Judge, Halima Tauheed during the announcement of a partnership with MIT Solve for Delta-2 and DELT-Her innovators on Thursday, in Abuja.
By Abiodun Folarin
WorldStage— Ten Nigerian innovators under the DELTA-2 Programme and Developing Engineering Leaders Through Her (DELT-Her), initiatives are set to benefit from a six-month acceleration programme organised in partnership with MIT Solve in Boston, Massachusetts, United States.
The initiative, spearheaded by the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) and the Presidential Implementation Committee on Technology Transfer (PICTT), is aimed at strengthening homegrown innovations, improving their commercial viability and accelerating their transition from research and development to market-ready solutions.
Chairman of PICTT, Dr. Dahiru Mohammed, disclosed this during a media briefing at the committee’s office in Abuja, explaining that 10 innovators would be selected from 20 candidates drawn from the DELTA-2 and DELT-Her programmes following a competitive pitching exercise before a panel of judges.
He said the selected innovators, whose solutions are at different stages of readiness for scaling, would receive technical support, mentorship and entrepreneurial guidance to position their innovations for commercial success.
According to Mohammed, MIT Solve will conduct an initial assessment of the individual and collective needs of the innovators to develop tailored programmes focused on refining business models, strengthening investment pitches and building the entrepreneurial leadership required to grow their enterprises.
He explained that the six-month programme would also feature cohort engagements, bringing participants together with industry associations, academic institutions and other ecosystem stakeholders to strengthen partnerships, visibility and support networks for emerging Nigerian innovators.
Mohammed described the partnership as a major opportunity for Nigerian innovators to access international expertise and support, stressing that the involvement of government institutions provides the necessary backing to move promising local innovations towards commercialisation.
He said the DELTA-2 Programme was designed to help entrepreneurs access global funding opportunities and strategic partnerships to advance their innovations, research, development and innovation activities towards commercially viable products that could support Nigeria’s industrial development.
On the DELT-Her initiative, he said the programme specifically targets female engineers across the country, providing them with opportunities to showcase their research and innovations and take their solutions to the marketplace.
He expressed concern over the relatively low representation of female engineers in Nigeria compared with global averages, noting that the initiative was designed to bridge the gap by expanding opportunities for women in engineering and technology.
Mohammed said the collaboration among NASENI, PICTT and MIT Solve would accelerate the growth of innovators emerging from both programmes and strengthen Nigeria’s capacity to develop and commercialise homegrown technologies.
He also commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for providing the policy environment and institutional support for NASENI and PICTT to advance innovation and support Nigerian entrepreneurs.
MIT Solve is an open-innovation initiative of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology that connects social impact entrepreneurs with funding, expertise and other resources to develop solutions to global challenges.
Among the judges expected to participate in selecting the 10 finalists are Halima Tauheed of MIT Solve, Olamide Apejoye, Project Coordinator, Musa Ali Baba, Consultant to PICTT, and Chief Tunde Rahman, alongside other members of the panel.
