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Tag: Senator Ezenwa Francis Onyewuchi

  • NASENI-PICTT Grants N229m to DELT-Her 2.0 Initiative Awardees

    NASENI-PICTT Grants N229m to DELT-Her 2.0 Initiative Awardees

    The National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) in partnership with the Presidential Implementation Committee on Technology Transfer (PICTT) has granted the sum of N229 million to 14 awardees of the Developing Engineering Leaders Through Her (DELT-Her 2.0) initiative.

    Speaking at the awards ceremony held at the Agency’s headquarters today, Thursday, 6th November 2025, the Executive Vice Chairman/Chief Executive of NASENI, Mr Khalil Suleiman Halilu, stated that DELT-Her represents an opportunity platform through which women can turn bold engineering ideas into solutions that change the world.

    The NASENI boss stated that out of the 9,925 project proposals, 14 women engineers emerged as awardees, receiving N229 million in grant funding to advance their innovative projects across critical sectors, including agriculture, clean energy, health, mobility, digital security, and environmental sustainability.

    He said NASENI believes that gender inclusion is not charity, but a strategy, as every woman empowered through DELT-Her represents a new capacity for the nation’s technology and manufacturing ecosystem, bringing a unique perspective that drives better designs, smarter products, and more human-centred innovation.

    According to him, “the first edition of DELT-Her in 2024 ignited a movement by empowering six outstanding female engineers with N70.5 million in grant support to develop pioneering innovations. This year, DELT-Her 2.0 attracted 9,925 project proposals, compared to just 120 applications in the previous year.”

    Halilu added that “from mentoring 30 school girls in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in 2024, the programme scaled in 2025 to reach over 150 girls across Kwara, Niger, Plateau, Nasarawa and the FCT, providing mentorship, bootcamps and fabrication kits that have inspired them to develop their own prototypes.”

    In his opening address, Chairman of PICTT, Dr. Mohammed Dahiru commended the awardees, noting that their dedication, ingenuity and resilience exemplify the potential of women in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). “As we honour these milestones, let us recommit to sustaining this momentum, ensuring that DELT-Her continues to bridge gaps and drive national development,” he remarked.

    The Senate President, Senator Godswill Akpabio, represented by the Chairman, Senate Committee on NASENI, Senator Ezenwa Francis Onyewuchi, reaffirmed the commitment of the Senate to the ideals represented by NASENI including indigenous production, local content development and gender inclusion in science and technology. “We believe that a nation that builds its technology builds its destiny and a nation that empowers its women secures its future,” he added.

    In her remarks, the Minister of State for Finance, Dr. Doris Udoka, commended NASENI and PICTT for their foresight and dedication. She noted that their initiatives align meaningfully with the Federal Government’s broader commitment to promoting technological independence, industrial growth, gender inclusion and national competitiveness.

    Goodwill messages came from the Postmaster-General and CEO, Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST), Engr. (Ms) Tola Odeyemi; Executive Director, Business Devt, Nigerian Export-Import Bank, Hon. Stella Okotete; Special Assistant on ICT to the President, Fawaz Amodu; representatives of President, Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), Minister of State for FCT; DG of PenCom; Secretary Government of the Federation and DG of NIMC.

  • Tinubu Directs MDAs to Patronise NASENI Technologies and Products

    Tinubu Directs MDAs to Patronise NASENI Technologies and Products

    President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has directed Federal Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) in the country to patronise technologies and products of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) to support Made-in-Nigeria goods and reduce importation.

    The President, represented by the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, made the declaration while commissioning NASENI-Portland Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) Conversion, Filling, Reverse Engineering and Training Centre in Utako, Abuja on Friday, May 31, 2024.

    President Bola Tinubu who doubles as Chairman, the NASENI Governing Board, said he is aware that the Agency is in collaboration with private sector players in the commercialisation of its products, noting that the Presidential CNG Initiative (PCNGi), which NASENI has keyed into is the way to tap into Nigeria’s abundant gas resources and to also attain cleaner energy.

    Furthermore, he said the use of CNG-powered transportation would reduce pressure on foreign exchange, save money for vehicle owners by converting fuel-emitting vehicles to CNG. He equally lauded the Agency for working with private sector collaborators in the effort to establish lithium ore processing plant in the country to produce lithium battery for electric vehicles.  

    Earlier in his welcome address, the Executive Vice Chairman/CEO of NASENI, Khalil Suleiman Halilu, said the NASENI-Portland CNG Conversion and Training Centre, a partnership between NASENI and Portland Gas Limited, is a state-of-the-art facility for the conversion of fossil fuel vehicles to CNG, a cleaner and more cost-effective alternative.

    He said this facility can convert 15 cars every two hours, translating into an output of 2,700 conversions every month.  “Mr. President, by our calculations, if Nigeria is able to have 10 of this kind of facility in each of the 36 States and the FCT, we will be able to convert every vehicle in the country to CNG within one year”, he said.

    He urged the President to give NASENI approval to convert all the vehicles in the State House fleet to CNG. “We are asking for your approval to do this, and showcase our capabilities. Second, we are offering to carry out CNG conversions for every Ministry, Department and Agency of the Federal Government at a cost.

    Equally, to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Halilu said NASENI is willing to make available to its contractors NASENI’S CNG generators, for the purpose of test-running the lighting project on Bill Clinton Drive (the highway leading to the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport) to encourage them to purchase the Agency’s streetlights for the project.

    Good will messages poured in from the Minister of Petroleum (Gas), Epkerikpo Ekpo; Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris Malagi; Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Uche Nnaji; Chairman, Senate Committee on NASENI, Senator Ezenwa Francis Onyewuchi; and Chairman, House Committee on NASENI, Hon. Taofik Ajilesoro.

     The NASENI-Portland CNG Conversion and Training Centre, equipped with the latest technology and staffed with trained professionals to ensure efficient and safe conversions, aims to build local capacity and domesticate CNG technology.

     It offers comprehensive training programmes for technicians, engineers, and other stakeholders, fostering domestication of expertise in CNG systems and promoting the adoption of green energy solutions across the nation.

     The NASENI initiative is expected to significantly reduce vehicular emissions, contributing to cleaner air and a healthier environment. Additionally, the adoption of CNG will offer economic benefits by reducing fuel costs for consumers and creating new job opportunities and technical expertise in Nigeria’s green energy sector.

  • NASENI To Raise Number of Female Engineers in Nigeria Over Next 5 Years

    NASENI To Raise Number of Female Engineers in Nigeria Over Next 5 Years

    AS PICTT/NASENI Unveil Initiative supporting Female Engineers to succeed in Engineering and Technology-Based Enterprises

    The Executive Vice Chairman/Chief Executive Officer (EVC/CEO) of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), Mr. Khalil Suleiman Halilu said the Agency would double the number of female Engineers in Nigeria over the next five years.

    The EVC/CEO made this pledge today Friday at NASENI Headquarters, Abuja during the official launch of “Developing Engineering Leaders Through Her” (DELT-Her), an event which also coincided with the global commemoration of International Women’s Day (IWD).

    Delt-Her, according to Mr.  Halilu is an initiative, a subset of Delta-2 programme, floated to close the gender gap in engineering practice in the country, inspire next generation of female engineers, provide financing support for new ideas and projects, translating them into viable businesses, and ultimately to strengthen the entire engineering ecosystem.

    Mr. Halilu said, “DELT-Her is what I call an opportunity platform”, through which girls and young women can pitch and present their exciting and groundbreaking engineering ideas, for funding by NASENI, through our collaboration with the Presidential Implementation Committee on Technology Transfer (PICTT).

    Speaking further on the project, he said, DELT-Her “seeks to correct the in balance in practice and enterprise development, by focusing attention and funding on young women, and very importantly, creating and cultivating public awareness around the need to train and mentor more women into the engineering professions.

    According to him, what this should ideally mean is that women should make up half of all professional spaces in the country but, for now, this is far from reality. “The global average for female representation in engineering is 28 per cent. In Nigeria, it is only five percent, only one in 20 Nigerian engineers is a woman. This awareness component of the work is one that we will take very seriously, working through schools, and storytelling campaigns.

    “We intend to, through DELT-HER, double the number of female engineers in Nigeria over the next five years. This will mean working extensively at the level of secondary education, which is where young girls make the vital decisions regarding choice of professional field”, he affirmed.

    Earlier in his welcome address, Chairman, PICTT, Dr. Mohammed Dahiru stated that, “The Committee, through continuous support of NASENI is determined to fund innovative and commercially viable ideas in engineering and technology-oriented proposals by women. Therefore, today’s launch of call for proposals from young women marks the beginning of a chain of events which are expected to lead to engineering start-up companies owned and run by women.”

    In her keynote address, the President of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), Engr. Margaret Aina Oguntala said DELT-HER initiative sought to address the challenges of practice by the female gender, and to unlock the full potentials of women in engineering.

    Other goodwill messages at the event included the chairman, Senate Committee on NASENI, Senator Ezenwa Francis Onyewuchi who pledged his support for Women in engineering and science sector to ensure that they are given their rightful position in society.

    Others who gave goodwill messages include the Senior Special Assistant to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Citizenship and Leadership, Rinsola Abiola and Chairman, Association of Professional Women Engineers of Nigeria(APWEN), Engr. Mrs. Katume Giwa. The event was graced by students from Government Secondary School, Dasara, Kuje, Abuja.

  • Senate Commends NASENI On Accelerated Technology Transfer

    Senate Commends NASENI On Accelerated Technology Transfer

    Today, the Senate Committee on National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) has commended the Agency for championing local content development of Solar-Powered smart irrigation, tricycles, electric motorbikes and others with accelerated technology transfer.

    The Chairman, Senate Committee on NASENI, Senator Ezenwa Francis Onyewuchi who led other members of the Committee on an oversight function visit to NASENI Headquarters, Abuja expressed satisfaction, while being conducted by the Executive Vice Chairman/CEO of NASENI, Mr. Khalil Suleiman Halilu round some of the NASENI products and facilities.

    Other products inspected include animal feed processing machines and NASENI transformers, electric motorcycles and tricycles as well as the NASENI home and irrigation solar systems.

    According to Senator Onyewuchi, “The committee is quite pleased with the level of progress and we want to assure NASENI of the support of the National Assembly to make sure that agency drives effectively the vision of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in this area and I want to also thank them for making Nigeria go green, moving from fuel to non-fossil products, it is quite commendable. We are quite pleased and we want to encourage them to do more.”

    According to the committee members who spoke separately, with the NASENI home solar and the electric bikes, local businesses will be enhanced, the economy of the country will improve, adding that urban and rural areas power challenges would be overcome if NASENI solar system is mass produced.

    The EVC/CEO of NASENI, Mr. Khalil Suleiman Halilu said some NASENI products would be ready in the second quarter of this year, adding that the Agency is establishing a Technology Transfer Hub within its headquarters to bring eco-friendly technologies closer to people and to make it affordable both on short and long term basis.

     “We promised Nigerians that by the first quarter of this year, they are going to be seeing NASENI products and today, you have witnessed three products- solar irrigation system, which is like a generator, but completely solar and batteries and the second one is our electronic motorcycle and tricycle (Keke) and the last one being the solar home system where you can power your entire house off-grid,” Halilu said.  

    “You will soon start seeing NASENI branded products in our efforts to build a national brand for the country and of course, if you are doing commercial viable products, they have to be affordable to the common man and very soon, you will start seeing them in the market,” he added.

    Other lawmakers who made the trip include Chairman, Senate Committee on Science and Technology, Senator Aminu Iya Abbas; Deputy Chairman, Senate Committee on NASENI, Sen. Mohammed Ogoshi Onawo; Member, Senate Committee on NASENI, Sen. David  Jimkura; Member, Senate Committee on NASENI, Sen. Sharafadeen Abiodun Alli; and Sen. Abdullaziz Musa Yar’Adua.