Nigerian Young Academy Gets Charge for National Development
For Nigeria to witness sustained growth of its economy and other sectors, scientific research must be tailored towards solving problems affecting the people.
It was against this backdrop that scientists at a forum in Lagos challenged young scientists in the Nigerian Young Academy (NYA) to collaborate and dismantle disciplinary boundaries in conducting research aimed at solving societal problems and improving human well-being.
President of the NYA, Prof. Temitope Olabisi-Onuminya, gave the advice at the academy’s 16th anniversary conference and General Assembly ongoing at Lagos State University.
Olabisi-Onuminya said researchers must close ranks and collaborate across disciplines to achieve desired results.
She said the academy, which began as a vision, had grown into a vibrant community committed to research excellence, adding that collaboration among scientists across disciplines would enable them to achieve greater feats in developing solutions to societal challenges.
The experts spoke against the backdrop of concerns that researchers often work in silos and within disciplinary boundaries, limiting the impact of their work on society.
The conference, co-hosted by Lagos State University, focused on research capacity building in the era of Artificial Intelligence, grant writing skills and practical data analysis.
The event, which began on August 16, is scheduled to end on August 20.
With the theme, “Convergent Research for Global Impact: Integrating Knowledge, Innovation and Policy,” the conference brought together researchers, academics, industry leaders, policymakers and civil society representatives to explore ways of integrating knowledge from different disciplines for development.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the NYA was inaugurated on August 30, 2010, at the instance of the Global Young Academy by the Nigerian Academy of Science as a platform for outstanding researchers below the age of 45.
To commemorate its 16th anniversary, the academy inducted seven new researchers: Dr Shitu Abubakar, Dr John Simon, Dr Sulaimon Femi-Abimbade, Dr Hameed Akande-Bashiru, Dr Mobolaji Adenike-Titilayo, Dr Eli Danladi and Dr Funmilola Adebisi-Oluwafemi.
The academy also elevated 22 of its members to the prestigious status of Fellows.
They are Dr Ibukun Adesiyan, Dr Gabriel Anyanwu, Dr Oyewale Morakinyo, Prof. Stephen Adefagha, Dr Murtala Isah, Dr Owolabi Bankole, Dr Nuraddeen Garba, Dr Ben Enagbonma, Dr Abdul-Azeez Adeyemi-Anjorin, Dr Chinwoke Ifeanyi-Obi, Dr Samson Olaniyi, Dr Isah Mohammed, Dr Olumuyiwa Adegun and Dr Oluwatoyin Fatunsin.
Others are Dr Olaide Wahab, Dr Oluwakemi Rotimi, Dr Isaac Animasaun, Dr Kingsley Ukhurebor, Dr Zaharaddeen Garba, Dr Mutiat Bolanle Ibrahim, Dr Olorunfemi Molehin and Prof. Abosede Olufunso.
Speaking at the event, the Guest Speaker and Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akinola Abayomi, described research as an instrument of national development and urged young researchers to expand their horizons and tailor their research outcomes towards improving human well-being.
Abayomi, who was represented at the event by the Head of the Dental Centre, Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), Prof. Tuoyo Okoturo, charged the academy to bring more young professionals into its fold to promote human-centred research outcomes.
He said the NYA represented the resilient spirit of Nigerian researchers and should continue to encourage the dismantling of disciplinary boundaries to foster collaboration and promote ideas for the common good.
According to him, the future belongs to societies that integrate research for social transformation.
“Development of locally relevant solutions to social challenges drives job creation, industrial development, vibrant community enterprises and foreign investment.
“Conscious efforts should be made by members to exhibit disciplinary convergence to tropicalise research solutions and findings towards domestic challenges for the body to remain relevant,” he said.
He tasked the academy with collaborating to find solutions to potential crises in climate change, health, transportation, food insecurity, housing deficits, drug-resistant diseases and misinformation.
Also speaking, the President of the Nigerian Academy of Science, Prof. Abubakar Sambo, urged the new entrants into the academy to sustain the tempo of excellence in scientific research that qualified them for membership.
Sambo said the Nigerian and African environments held numerous opportunities for researchers willing to undertake in-depth inquiry into the unknown.
He encouraged the researchers to refrain from working in silos and instead collaborate with counterparts in other fields to achieve desired goals and contribute to societal development.
He also urged them to mentor and carry younger researchers along to ensure a continuous flow of fresh ideas.
President of the Nigerian Young Academy, Prof. Temitope Olabisi-Onuminya, said 16 years after its establishment, the academy had grown from a vision into a vibrant community committed to research excellence.
According to her, interdisciplinary engagement, mentorship and collaboration towards addressing issues of national development had remained focal points of the NYA.
“Our theme today challenges us further to transcend boundaries, transform knowledge generated in our institutions into innovations, policies and practical solutions that improve lives,” she said.
Also speaking at the event, former Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the University of Lagos, Prof. Oluwole Familoni, said social challenges were not confined to one discipline and urged researchers to widen their scope for better results.
According to him, scientific creativity means seeing relationships where others see boundaries.
“It means asking questions others have not thought to ask. It means imagining solutions that do not yet exist.
“A chemist sees a molecule, a physician sees a disease, an engineer sees a device, a data scientist sees a pattern, while a patient sees the lived problem,” he said.
Familoni urged scientists to work together and bring their different perspectives into a common problem-solving space for national growth.
By Uchenna Eletuo
