THE DEVELOPMENT OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY IN NIGERIA:

NEED FOR CREATIVITY AMONG NIGERIANS IN A RECESSING

ECONOMY

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Cyril Chinwendu Ononye

Cyriltex75@gmail.com

ABSTRACT:

The evolutions and successes of the world today are products of science and technology. A close and careful examination of the wonders and achievements of science and technology would make one to believe and generalize that science and technology (ST) have the solutions to world and human problems (Edobor and Maliki). By the nature of science and technology, man has been able to expand and exploit his environment for his benefits. However, this does not rule out some cases of mishaps. Science and technology has proven beyond all reasonable doubt that earthly resources are inexhaustible and can be regenerated through continuous scientific and technological means via education. Education, which is the process of acquiring basic skills and knowledge, is fundamental for science and technology to strive.

 Agboghoroma and Umudhe (2007): opine that the difference between developed countries and under-developed countries lies greatly on their utilization of science and technology in national life. While the developed countries are characterized by their attainment of sophistication in science and technology, the under-developed countries lack such characteristics. Agboghoroma and Umudhe were of the view that for a nation to be regarded as developed, the level of science and technology must be very high and sophisticated and this simply affirm the contributions of Edobor and Maliki (2006) that “no nation can rise above the level of its scientific and technology attainment” hence the need for creativity among nations.

INTRODUCTION:

Nigeria is ranked among the 25 strongest economies in the world and has the largest gross domestic product (GDP) in Africa as at July, 2015. But Nigeria has gone backwards at the time when countries like China and South Korea were making giant strides in development of science and technology while growing their economy at the same time. Nigeria has invested little in the area of development of science and technology over the past three (3) decades and this is made conspicuous in the country’s gross expenditure for research which is just 0.02% of the country’s GDP, less than half the world average of  0.4%(UNESCO:GDP GERD 2016).

Many smaller African countries as at 2015 have done better than Nigeria and they include; Mozambique (0.5%), Mauritius (0.4%) and Botswana (0.5%).This lack of investment, has stagnated research and development in strategic industries such as the Agribusiness sector, which has remained stagnant for decades without creatively generating the innovation that’s necessary to transform the industry. Nigeria lost her position as world leading country in palm oil industry to Indonesia and Malaysia- two countries which use technology better. And despite Nigeria being the largest producer of cassava, she lost her position as a market leader to Thailand due to lack of creativity and interest in looking for new ways to improve on their local product.

With the above stated facts, it is not an understatement to assert that, the widening gaps between countries and nations in the 21^st century, is linked more and more, to corresponding gaps in development of Science and Technology. Hence, I can categorically state that S&T is the dividing line between developed nations and those less developed.

KEY WORDS

Development, science, Technology and Creativity

DEFINITION OF TERMS

Science is a systematic way of acquiring knowledge about a particular field of study. According to Science Made Simple, a leading website in scientific education, science helps us to gain knowledge, through an organized system of observation and experimentation. This system is used to describe different natural phenomena. The aforementioned description is that of pure science, and biology, chemistry, physics and Earth science are the basic fields of pure science.

Technology can be defined as the products, tools and processes used to accomplish tasks in daily life. According to Use of Technology, technology is the application of science to solve practical problems of human lives.

Wikipedia.com defines creativity as the act of turning new and imaginative ideas into reality.it is characterized by the ability to perceive the world in a new way, to find hidden patterns and generate solutions. While Development as defined by Merriam Webster Dictionary, is the act or process of growing or causing something to grow or become larger or more advanced.

OBJECTIVES

Following the above definitions, I believe that the aim of this paper, is to find out various ways of advancing our Country’s systematic way of acquiring knowledge about a particular field (Science) and the process of applying this acquired knowledge to solve practical problems in our country Nigeria. And for this to come about, there is an urgent need for creativity among Nigerians in their different endeavors especially as its concerns development of science and technology, which is the topic of discussion in this paper.

Hence, this paper shall attempt discussing why creativity is lacking among Nigerians and the various challenges Nigeria faces today, due to lack of creativity and neglect of development of science and technology. It shall also x-ray some of the benefits of developing our science and technology and the possible means to do that, especially in this moment of economic recession.

WHY THE LACK OF CREATIVITY AMONG NIGERIANS?

The above question, is one of the reoccurring question that often keep me busy during my quiet moments and it was because of this question that I chose to write on this topic. Having thought extensively, and having engaged myself in discussions with different peoples on the above question, I came to a conclusion that two major factors are the cause of lack of creativity among Nigerians and they are; dependency on crude oil and the federal system of government practiced in Nigeria.

How crude oil took away our creativity:

Crude oil, a very versatile and flexible, non-reproductive, depleting, natural (hydrocarbon) resource is a fundamental input to modern economic activities, providing about 50% of the total energy demand in the world. Petroleum or crude oil is an oily, bituminous liquid, consisting of a mixture of many substances mainly the elements of carbon and hydrogen, and thus known as hydrocarbon. It also contains a very small amount of non-hydrocarbon elements, chief amongst which are sulphur, nitrogen and oxygen.

Nigerians by divine providence found themselves in a geographical area where mineral resources are in abundance without any slight sign of some of those natural disaster, which other countries of the world do experience. They found themselves in what could be called an “already made world” were they have all the resources they need without any serious problem challenging them. Hence all tend to relax and enjoy, thus confirming the biblical passage that says “man in his riches lack wisdom” and that’s why I see Nigeria as a spoilt child of a rich Dad who knows nothing but to depend totally on the hard earn legacies of the father without even thinking out how to make his own contributions atleast to support what the father had, so that people coming after him will still have something to stand on.

Crude oil did not assume its present significant position in the national economy until the early 1970’s. However, since its discovery, a wrong notion of Nigeria being “a very rich” country came to be and with this notion, everybody and everything in and about Nigeria, became entirely dependent on the revenue accruing from the export of crude oil and thus, individual efforts and creativity needed to develop other sectors started lacking.

Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, CFR. In 2012, warned that Nigeria is already feeling the effects of the global uncertainty which is now putting downward pressure on the price of oil, and consequently, on our growth numbers. That Even though our growth figures remain healthy relative to several other countries as at 2012, it is imperative that we insulate our economy from the negative impact of global shocks by building both short-term buffers – in the form of higher foreign reserves and excess crude account balances, and the sovereign wealth fund we are implementing; and longer-term buffers – in the form of diversifying our economy away from oil dependency by prioritizing investment into key sectors like agriculture, power, solid minerals, education, health, ICT, science and technology development and others that can drive growth and job creation. But she was not listened to and today we are suffering from economic recession, which we could have prevented. It is often said that innovation (creativity) is the central issue in economic prosperity, therefore, we Nigerians have to be more self-reliant and creatively develop innovative ways to diversify our economy, and grow sustainably.

How federal system of government took away our creativity;

The federal system of government practiced in Nigeria, has killed individual ingenuity among Nigerians to the level that we wait for the federal government to do visually everything for us. Thus everybody is thinking only what the government should do for them and no one has taken time to think of what he would do for himself not to talk of the country in general. Nigerians should begin to generate useful ideas to make something new, as well as improve on the old ways of doing things (Yunana J. Kpaji and Dalami Ibrahim).

DEVELOPMENT OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

British Physicist, Stephen Hawking would assert that the world has changed far more in the past 100 years than in any century in history and that the reason is not political or economic but technological – technologies that flowed directly from advances in basic science. The assertion above by Hawking, explains the estimate that about 35 percent of the world’s GDP growth from 2000 to 2008 was the result of productivity derived from technological capability and its enhancement through information technology, human capital development, and so on.

Development in science and technology, can help to diversify the economy by improving productivity in sectors like agriculture. Productivity in Nigeria’s agriculture sector – which contributes about 40 percent of our GDP, and employs more than half our workforce – remains low. Yield per hectare is 20 to 50 percent of what is obtained in similar developing countries. In fact Nigeria is food insecure, giving that we spend more than $10 billion annually on food imports. The Nomura Food Vulnerability Index ranks Nigeria as the 4th most vulnerable country to global food price shocks, out of 80 countries. We lack the right plant varieties and storage systems to be efficient. Yet global experience shows that with the right investment in science and technology for agricultural processes, output can rise quickly. Malaysia, for example, laid emphasis on research so as to develop higher yielding oil palm varieties. Today, they control 40 percent of world oil palm products trade valued at $18 billion. With aggressive investment in agriculture, Vietnam and China took 40 percent of their population out of poverty in 10 years. These achievements can be replicated here in Nigeria. (Okonjo Iwuala CFR (2012))

Furthermore, the recent development of engines that harness solar power, is one of the creative responses to the problems carbon emission and fuel fossil like diesel and petrol pose to the world, imagine the impact, if Nigeria can adopt such technology in our country? It would simply lower the huge amount of N2.19 trillion (5 percent of GDP) we spend on fuel subsidy, such money could be channeled to other sectors to diversify our economy and air pollution in Nigeria would minimize. Also, the World Bank estimates that with the right technology, Nigeria can generate up to 10,000 MW over the medium to long-term, through Concentrated Solar Power. We currently generate about 4,000 MW from all sources.

More so, if Nigeria could advance science and technology in the ICT sector, there would be a tremendous economic growth. This is because a recent World Bank study shows that the invention and usage of mobile phones and broadband internet is strongly associated with economic growth: a 10 percent increase in mobile phone coverage and high-speed internet connections will increase GDP by 0.8 percent and 1.3 percent on average, respectively. In Nigeria, for instance, our telecommunications sector has been growing at over 30 percent annually (32.83 percent in Q1 2012) – outperforming growth in any other sector by far, on the back of rising mobile phone and internet subscriptions. (OKonjo Iwuala CFR 2012)

Advancing science and technology in Nigeria, would also improve the quality of life. For instance, research in healthcare has proven vital to the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of various killer diseases. The American Heart Association recently announced that deaths due to coronary heart disease fell by nearly 40 percent in the USA over the last decade due largely to new treatment inventions. The same applies to HIV/AIDS – one of the top three killers of African youth. In 1996, a 20-year old person in the US with AIDS expected to live for about 3 to 5 years, but now expects to live to be 69 years. Only about a few weeks ago was it announced that – Truvada – an HIV fighting pill, can also be used to prevent the disease, after a three-year study. In Nigeria, preventable or treatable infectious diseases such as malaria, pneumonia, diarrhea, measles and HIV/AIDS still account for more than 70 per cent of the estimated one million under-five deaths in Nigeria. Several of these deaths occur as a result of misdiagnosis, due to the poor state of technology in many hospitals. This is why many Nigerians are going abroad, to countries like Egypt, and India, for medical services, spending between $600 million and $1 billion annually, according to our health ministry’s estimates.

In the education sector, particularly higher education, in as much as science and technology are the agents for rapid and progressive socio-economic development, effective and qualitative education is needed for its sustenance. Hence, no nation can develop more than its development in education (Edobor and Maliki, 2006). In the same vein, Imiere (2004) asserted that the quest for national development vis-à-vis scientific technology, growth and self-reliance should be matched with corresponding progress in the science and technology education.

Many renowned Universities in the world such as Harvard and Stanford to mention but a few, are providing free, high-quality, rigorously assessed and highly accessible online university level education to the masses. Even though this may not result in the award of a university degree, it can provide a level of certification that can develop industry-standard skills and actually provide a way out for 80 percent of the 1 million Nigerian youth who do not get into universities each year, due to limited supply of college/university places.

PROSPECTS

The development of science and technology in Nigeria portends a great value for the nation because science and technology, is the major tool needed for Nigeria’s development. Science and technology when properly developed, will accelerate the rapid social, economic, political and cultural development needed as a nation to be among the developed nations of the world. The following recommendations as proposed by Edobor and Maliki, could be of great help.

Ø  A council made up of experts and respected scientists should be established, for a dedicated science, technology and creativity focus.

Ø   More resources should be channeled to the area of science, technology and innovation programs with the aim of diversifying our economy.

Ø  National education reforms, focusing on creativity and entrepreneurship should be launched so as to produce next generation of scientists.

Ø  National policies on science and technology education should be implemented effectively.

Ø  Science and technology education curriculum should be reviewed periodically.

Ø  Manpower development and re-training should be sustained.

Ø   Government should provide the enabling environment for development of science and technology to strive and affordable and qualitative science and technology education should be provided for Nigerians.

CONCLUSION

Science and technology education is believed to be the bedrock for sustainable national development that Nigeria need. It is hoped that with the tackling of the identified challenges facing science and technological development, sustainable national development will be attained in Nigeria. Hence I will conclude with the words of Ademola Adenle that despite its wealth and capital, the Nigerian economy is largely driven by the service sector and by oil extraction. Therefore, the country needs to restructure her economy, develop new infrastructure that will enhance economic performance and push for greater societal change by encouraging creativity.