Key Takeaways
- • The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) and Nigeria LNG Limited (NLNG) launched a US$9 million professorial chair endowment programme, with each of six Nigerian universities receiving US$1.5 million.
- • The NC-R&D Professorial Chair Endowment Programme funds research into operational efficiency, emissions management, safety, critical infrastructure and industrial sustainability in the oil and gas sector.
- • Rivers State University's NLNG Research and Innovation Centre for Computer and Electrical Engineering (RICCEE) will serve as the coordinating hub for collaboration among the six beneficiary universities.
- • NLNG's Managing Director and CEO Adeleye Falade said Google, Cisco and MTN have shown interest in supporting the initiative, according to his remarks at the kick-off ceremony.
- • The programme requires universities to deliver defined research objectives, measurable outcomes and commercialisation pathways, with the stated aim of shifting research from publication toward industrial application.
Summary
The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) and Nigeria LNG Limited (NLNG) have launched a US$9 million professorial chair endowment programme across six Nigerian universities. Under the Nigerian Content Research and Development (NC-R&D) Professorial Chair Endowment Programme, each institution will receive US$1.5 million to establish a specialised chair focused on agreed industry research priorities. The programme is implemented in partnership with NCDMB under the supervision of its Planning, Research and Statistics Directorate.
The beneficiary institutions are the University of Ibadan, Rivers State University, Modibbo Adama University in Yola, Aliko Dangote University of Science and Technology in Kano, the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, and Yakubu Gowon University, formerly the University of Abuja. Research focus areas differ by institution. The University of Ibadan will focus on natural gas processing, pollution control and environmental management. Rivers State University will concentrate on digital engineering, intelligent energy systems, automation and asset integrity. Modibbo Adama University will address energy transition and the environment, and Aliko Dangote University will focus on sustainable energy innovation and climate-resilient food systems. The University of Nigeria, Nsukka, will specialise in green energy production and geoenvironmental engineering, while Yakubu Gowon University will focus on geoscience and satellite intelligence for resilient gas infrastructure. The funding also covers minor civil works and infrastructure upgrades to convert identified spaces into research centres.
Speaking at the kick-off ceremony, NLNG Managing Director and CEO Adeleye Falade described the programme as an investment in Nigeria's capacity to translate academic knowledge into practical solutions. He said the RICCEE at Rivers State University is envisaged as the coordinating point for collaboration among the universities, and that discussions on implementation arrangements were already under way. Falade also said other partners, including Google, Cisco and MTN, had indicated interest in supporting the initiative. He outlined a "triple helix" approach linking government, industry and academia through sabbaticals, exchanges, practical testing of research and joint development of postgraduate curricula.
NCDMB Executive Secretary Engr. Felix Omatsola Ogbe, represented at the event by Senior Technical Adviser Engr. Austin Uzoka, said the endowment complements the Board's ongoing investments in research infrastructure, including specialised R&D Centres of Excellence across six universities. He charged the universities with moving from research for publication to research for application and said they must deliver defined objectives, measurable outcomes, prudent resource use and sustained industry collaboration. Each university will work toward agreed research targets and commercialisation pathways, and the institutions will jointly host an information management hub. The arrangements also allow industry professionals to contribute expertise while pursuing master's and doctoral degrees.
The beneficiary institutions are the University of Ibadan, Rivers State University, Modibbo Adama University in Yola, Aliko Dangote University of Science and Technology in Kano, the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, and Yakubu Gowon University, formerly the University of Abuja. Research focus areas differ by institution. The University of Ibadan will focus on natural gas processing, pollution control and environmental management. Rivers State University will concentrate on digital engineering, intelligent energy systems, automation and asset integrity. Modibbo Adama University will address energy transition and the environment, and Aliko Dangote University will focus on sustainable energy innovation and climate-resilient food systems. The University of Nigeria, Nsukka, will specialise in green energy production and geoenvironmental engineering, while Yakubu Gowon University will focus on geoscience and satellite intelligence for resilient gas infrastructure. The funding also covers minor civil works and infrastructure upgrades to convert identified spaces into research centres.
Speaking at the kick-off ceremony, NLNG Managing Director and CEO Adeleye Falade described the programme as an investment in Nigeria's capacity to translate academic knowledge into practical solutions. He said the RICCEE at Rivers State University is envisaged as the coordinating point for collaboration among the universities, and that discussions on implementation arrangements were already under way. Falade also said other partners, including Google, Cisco and MTN, had indicated interest in supporting the initiative. He outlined a "triple helix" approach linking government, industry and academia through sabbaticals, exchanges, practical testing of research and joint development of postgraduate curricula.
NCDMB Executive Secretary Engr. Felix Omatsola Ogbe, represented at the event by Senior Technical Adviser Engr. Austin Uzoka, said the endowment complements the Board's ongoing investments in research infrastructure, including specialised R&D Centres of Excellence across six universities. He charged the universities with moving from research for publication to research for application and said they must deliver defined objectives, measurable outcomes, prudent resource use and sustained industry collaboration. Each university will work toward agreed research targets and commercialisation pathways, and the institutions will jointly host an information management hub. The arrangements also allow industry professionals to contribute expertise while pursuing master's and doctoral degrees.
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