The Director-General, Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC), Professor Hussaini Doko Ibrahim, has said the Council will continue to partner with state governments in the country to develop STI infrastructure in educational institutions nationwide.

The DG made this statement when he received the Nasarawa State Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Hajia Fati J. Sambo in his office recently.

The DG said the Council was interested in providing infrastructural support to selected institutions of higher learning in the state in the area of STI in furtherance of the Council’s mandate on creating a data base on raw materials availability in the country.

He said the Council was desirous of promoting a strong information and communication platform that will make teaching and learning easier as part of efforts to develop the country’s educational institutions in the area of science and technology studies. He stated that it was necessary to develop critical information and data base for technical institutions as a basis for improving science education in the country.

The RMRDC Boss said that the Council, as part of its efforts to empower the nation’s science and technology-based learning institutions, was poised to provide scientific equipment to aid in the teaching of Chemistry, Physics and Biology for selected schools in the state.

He said this was especially so as the country makes effort to re-strategize in promoting the study of sciences in secondary and tertiary schools to foster the emergence of a technology and innovation driven economy.

“One of the national policies of the National Council of Science and Technology (NCST) has always been that for states that establish Science and Technology Ministry, RMRDC was mandated to provide them with STI infrastructure.” The DG said.

The DG also assured the Commissioner that the Council will respond to the needs of the ministry when necessary as it makes effort to strengthen its partnership with the state and that such requests should be made through the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology (FMST), for the provision of STI and other facilities approved for schools by the supervising ministry.

Speaking further, the DG said the Council will partner with the state to develop some of its mineral resources such as the salt processing project by women groups in Keana and Awe LGAs. He assured that the Council will also support the establishment of a small-scale barites and silica sand plant for mining and processing in the state, stressing that this will lead to job and wealth creation in the state.

Earlier, Hajia Sambo appealed to RMRDC to support Nasarawa state in the fabrication of a thin layer evaporator for salt processing for women groups in Keana and Awe LGAs. She said this will help to harness the full potentials of the salt deposits in the state.

The Commissioner also appealed to the Council to provide support for the establishment of a small-scale Barites and Silica Sand plant. This, according to her, will provide employment for the teeming youth as well as create wealth among the populace. She also noted that capacity would be built in the process in gemstone cutting and polishing, development of sesame cluster facility centre of the state at Doma and other investment issues such as harnessing the abundant orange, cashew and mango potentials for fruits concentration and juice processing in the state.

The Honourable Commissioner emphasised on the importance of a cordial working relationship between the State and RMRDC, saying that the vision of the Governor of Nasarawa state was to make the state a highly competitive economy especially with the natural resources and minerals available in the state.

Hajia Fati also stated that Nasarawa state is the second most economically viable state and with the most investment interest after Lagos state adding that Nasarawa state has nine special science schools, aside the existing science schools and three vocational centres.

The visit was concluded with a guided tour of the RMRDC Raw Materials Resource Centre.