The Abdulkadir Kure University Minna, (AKUM) Niger State is exploring partnership with the National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion (NOTAP) on technology development. The Vice Chancellor of the University Professor Mohammed Aliyu Paiko made this known when he paid a courtesy visit on the Director General of NOTAP Dr. Barr. Obiageli Amadiobi at the office headquarters in Abuja. The Vice Chancellor who described NOTAP as the melting pot of Technology, Science and Innovation in Nigeria said the visit to NOTAP is to explore areas of partnership in research to strengthen the activities of the citadel of learning stressing that the University has a lot to learn from NOTAP. Professor Paiko added that NOTAP has a lot to offer AKUM especially in NOTAP initiatives like the Intellectual Property Technology Transfer Offices (IPTTOs), the NOTAP-Industry Technology Transfer Fellowship (NITTF) and the NOTAP-Industry Research Laboratory Upgrade Project (NIRLUP). He added that the University management believes strongly in what NOTAP is doing and is appealing for the establishment of an IPTTO in the University campus and the upgrade of its chemical laboratory to enhance research activities within the University community. Responding, the Director General of NOTAP Dr. Barr. Obiageli Amadiobi who welcomed the team from AKUM said that apart from its major statutory regulatory function of technology transfer agreement registration, NOTAP is also involved in intellectual property promotion, protection and commercialization of indigenous research and development results and inventions. The NOTAP boss added that with the support of the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) in 2006, NOTAP commenced the Industry/Academia Linkage programme through the establishment of Intellectual Property and Technology Transfer Offices (IPTTOs) and so far, 68 have been established in knowledge institutions across the country. She added that the IPTTOs were established to enable researchers engage in demand-driven research for immediate impact on the socio-economic lives of Nigerians and that NOTAP is willing to partner with the University to deepen Research and Development (R&D) activities in Nigeria. She noted that NOTAP is also collaborating with PZ Cussons Nigeria Plc to upgrade selected chemical laboratories of research centers and tertiary institutions to meet global standards so as to encourage the multinational companies operating in Nigeria to patronize local research centers. Dr. Amadiobi said NOTAP needs more collaborators in this project to widen the scope and benefit the entire research community in Nigeria and by extension enhance the living standards of the ordinary Nigerian and promised NOTAP support to the University in terms of capacity building. She informed the AKUM team that this year’s interview for selected candidates in the NITTF programme will take place on Wednesday, 10th of July 2024 at the NOTAP conference room and also urged the University to officially apply for consideration in the NOTAP IPTTO project. Highlights of the visit was the inauguration of Dr. Amadiobi into the honorary fellowship of the Abdulkadir Kure University Minna by the Vice Chancellor Prof. Mohammed Paiko.
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