Zurray Integrated Services Ltd has called for urgent presidential action to reposition the country’s science and technology sector as a strategic driver of national development, economic diversification and global competitiveness following an extensive review of Nigeria’s science, innovation and technology policy landscape since the country’s return to democratic governance in 1999,
The recommendation is contained in a Presidential Policy Brief prepared by the Zurray Policy Observatory and Decision Intelligence Desk, titled “Repositioning Nigeria’s Science, Innovation and Technology Architecture: A Review of Policy, Funding and Institutional Performance Since 1999, With Recommendations for Presidential Action.”
Presenting the findings, Oyigu Onuche Elijah, the Lead Consultant of Zurray Integrated Services Ltd, said Nigeria has not suffered from a shortage of policies or institutions, but from weak implementation, fragmented coordination and decades of underinvestment in research and development.
“Nigeria has built an impressive institutional architecture for science, technology and innovation over the past four decades. The challenge is not the absence of policy; it is the persistent gap between policy ambition and financial commitment. We cannot expect world-class innovation while funding research at levels far below regional and global benchmarks,” he said.
The review found that Nigeria has developed multiple national science and innovation policies, sector-specific strategies and seventeen specialised agencies covering biotechnology, space research, industrial technology, energy, raw materials, applied mathematics and other critical fields. However, the report observed that research and development expenditure has consistently remained below 0.3 percent of Gross Domestic Product,.well below the African Union’s target of one percent.
According to the report, budgetary allocations to the sector have frequently fallen short of national expectations, while portions of approved funding have, in some years, been redirected to projects outside the core mandate of science, research and innovation.
Zurray noted that despite the country’s broad institutional footprint, overlapping mandates, inconsistent performance monitoring, weak research commercialisation and the absence of a statutory national research and innovation fund continue to limit the sector’s contribution to economic growth.
“Innovation should not be viewed merely as a scientific pursuit; it is a national economic strategy. Every naira invested in quality research has the potential to generate jobs, strengthen industrial productivity, improve national competitiveness and reduce dependence on imported technologies,” Oyigu stated
To address these challenges, Zurray recommends a comprehensive reform programme centred on the enactment of a consolidated Science, Technology and Innovation Act, the legal establishment of a National Research and Innovation Development Fund, statutory protection of research allocations from diversion, stronger institutional coordination among related agencies, outcome-based performance agreements and accelerated commercialisation of publicly funded research.
The report also proposes the creation of a transparent national Science, Technology and Innovation Policy Registry to enable government, policymakers and citizens to track policy implementation, institutional performance and funding commitments in real time.
Zurray Integrated Services Ltd believes that strengthening Nigeria’s innovation ecosystem is essential to achieving sustainable industrialisation, improving productivity, expanding employment opportunities and positioning the country as a leading knowledge economy on the African continent.
The organizario therefore, urged the Federal Executive Council and the National Assembly to work with the Federal Ministry of Innovation, Science and Technology in implementing far-reaching reforms capable of aligning policy ambition with institutional performance and sustainable financing.
Nigeria’s aspiration to become a knowledge-driven economy is neither unprecedented nor unattainable. Across Africa, countries that have treated science, technology and innovation as strategic national investments have demonstrated that sustained policy commitment, predictable financing and strong institutional coordination can translate research into economic competitiveness.
According to available reports, South Africa has developed one of Africa’s most mature science, technology and innovation systems through its White Paper on Science, Technology and Innovation (2019) and the Decadal Plan (2022–2032), which place science and innovation at the centre of national development. For the 2026/27 financial year, the Department of Science,
Technology and Innovation received an allocation of approximately R10.4 billion, supporting research infrastructure, advanced skills development, space science, hydrogen technologies and innovation commercialisation. The country has also adopted a long-term objective of raising research and development expenditure to 1.5 percent of GDP. These sustained investments have positioned South Africa as Africa’s leading producer of scientific research, while strengthening its global competitiveness in astronomy, biotechnology, vaccine development, renewable energy, space technology and advanced industrial research.
Ghana’s science, technology and innovation agenda is guided by its National Science, Technology and Innovation Policy (2017), which seeks to transform the country into a knowledge-based and technology-driven economy. Although public investment in research remains below one percent of GDP, successive governments have strengthened innovation through institutions such as the Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation and the Ghana Innovation and Research Commercialisation Centre.
Combined with sustained digital transformation programmes, these policies have supported the rapid growth of fintech, digital public services, technology entrepreneurship and innovation-driven enterprises, positioning Ghana as one of West Africa’s emerging technology ecosystems despite operating with comparatively limited financial resources.
Also, Egypt has pursued one of the continent’s most ambitious science and technology reform programmes under Egypt Vision 2030 and its National Strategy for Higher Education and Scientific Research. In line with constitutional commitments that target at least one percent of GDP for scientific research, the Egyptian Government has steadily expanded investments in research institutions, artificial intelligence, biotechnology, renewable energy, advanced manufacturing and technology parks.
These long-term policy and funding commitments have significantly strengthened university-industry collaboration, increased research output and accelerated technology commercialisation, enabling Egypt to emerge as one of Africa’s leading centres for scientific research, pharmaceutical innovation, digital technology and industrial development.
The experiences of these three countries reinforce a common lesson that science, technology and innovation become engines of national development only when policy is supported by predictable financing, strong institutions, effective commercialisation mechanisms and sustained political commitment.
Nigeria already possesses a broad institutional architecture and a substantial body of policy. The next stage is to align those assets with adequate funding, measurable performance and coordinated implementation capable of transforming scientific research into productivity, industrial competitiveness, job creation and long-term economic growth.
Zurray Integrated Services Ltd is a policy intelligence and strategic research organisation dedicated to supporting evidence-based governance, institutional effectiveness and informed decision-making. Through its Policy Observatory and Decision Intelligence Desk, the company undertakes policy monitoring, strategic research, governance analysis and public-sector decision innovation, providing practical recommendations that strengthen institutions and improve policy outcomes.
Policy brief prepared by:
Oyigu Onuche Elijah
Lead Consultant, Zurray Integrated Services Ltd
Through Zurray Policy Observatory and Decision Intelligence Desk
