PRESS STATEMENT
NASENI, Plateau State Government Sign MoU to Establish Food Processing Equipment and Machinery Development Institute in Plateau State. …Institute will start operations in the first quarter of 2022 –says NASENI Boss.
As part of President Muhammadu Buhari’s efforts to diversify the economy through the use of innovation and engineering resources in the country, the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) today in Abuja signed a memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Plateau State Government for the establishment of Food Processing Equipment & Machinery Development Institute(FOPEMDI) to be located in Jos, the State Capital.
NASENI is an Agency under the Direct Supervision of President Muhammadu Buhari who is Chairman of the Governing Board of NASENI.
The new Institute was recently approved by President Buhari amongst other 12 equipment development institutes to be established nationwide, two per geo-political zone of the country.
The Executive Vice Chairman/CE of NASENI, Engr. Prof.Mohammed Sani Haruna also disclosed that by the 1st quarter of the year 2022, the Institute will take off effectively.
With the signing of the agreement by the two parties, NASENI will set up indigenous equipment and machines facilities for processing of food in Plateau State and at the same time create employment opportunities for thousands of youths.
The MoU will ensure that both parties collaborate towards the emergence of entrepreneurs, sourcing of start-up capital for commercialization of new innovative products, sourcing of potential investors for commercialization of products and provision of business development activities in the food processing sub-sector.
Signing on behalf of NASENI, Prof Haruna said that FOPEMDI apart from taking off in the first quarter of 2022, he disclosed that the MoU would explore other related areas for collaboration between NASENI and Plateau state Government.
According to him “the MoU will focus on the transfer of technology and brokerage, technology acquisition, entrepreneurial training, technical and managerial backups from NASENI to make the Institute succeed.”
He said Plateau State had shown tremendous interest and also laid the right foundation for the transfer of NASENI technologies and engineering resources to the State to be used indirectly in developing the nation’s economy”.
The Honourable Commissioner for Science and Technology Plateau state, Hon. Gyang Dung Musa who represented the State Governor, Dr. Simon Lalong and signed the MoU on behalf of the State Government, said the people of the State were patiently waiting for the take-off of the institute, corroborating the EVC of NASENI that “with the signing of the agreement, thousands of Plateau State youths will be trained and empowered soon”
He stated that Governor Lalong was excited about the upcoming Institute and had devised all necessary measures to ensure that the institute was established while pledging to keep supporting NASENI’s innovations, adding that the Governor had approved the institute would be built on the same site that NASENI visited before.
He thanked President Buhari for hearing the plea of the people of Plateau State by approving the setting-up of the institute in Jos, the State Capital.
Other areas of collaborations between NASENI and Plateau State Government as identified in the MoU included Value Chain for Food Processing Technologies; Appropriate Technologies for Industrial clusters; Farming Equipment Development to support Agro-allied SMEs and industries; Renewable Energy including Solar Photovoltaic (PV)Panels production; Skill Acquisition including Foundry Technology amongst others.
SIGNED:
Olusegun Ayeoyenikan Deputy Director, Information.