By Ene Osang Abuja
Th e New Initiative for Credible Leadership (NiCrel) has lamented Nigeria’s economic quandary following the fall in oil prices at the international market, and has subsequently called on all stakeholders to seriously consider ways of getting the country out of the quagmire.
Th e Research and development based Civil Society Organization (CSO) said over dependency on oil was a hindrance and therefore said the country should focus on agriculture instead. Its Executive Secretary, Reverend Steven Onwu, made the call in Abuja at the weekend while addressing newsmen on the activities of Nigeria’s research institutions. Onwu said agriculture, which was the mainstream of the country’s gross national earnings in the early days after independence, has been the main source of revenue for many developed countries. He hailed the National Biotechnology Development Agency (NABDA) under the leadership of Professor Mrs. Lucy Ogbadu for her innovations in biotechnology and genetic engineering in the country.
He also averred that NABDA within the last two years has continued to work assiduously hard under its mandate to put the nation at par with global realities through its various innovations, scientifi c breakthroughs in the fi eld of genetics and intellectual acumen to move the country forward. Onwu noted that Professor Ogbadu is demonstrating to Nigerians through her sterling leadership anchored on accountability, probity and transparency that our journey to the Promised Land is not a mirage if we put all hands on deck and the country fi rst in all our dealings. “Th e organization is patriotically driving the “change agenda” by blazing the trail in this uncommon fi eld and the agency deserves a better funding support to do more. “No country in the world is as naturally endowed as Nigeria in terms of 21st century resources that are scattered across the various locations in the country and would require the needed intellectual drivers to achieve that amount of greatness which is commensurate with our resources.”
