EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 5 CENTERES ON PROMOTING LOCAL CONTENT IN SCIENCE, ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY – FG

The Federal Government says it is evolving a mechanism that will ensure the use of indigenous professionals in execution of projects in the country.

The Minister of Science and Technology, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, stated this in a message to the South East Dialogue on Presidential Executive Order, No 5 that was heldin Enugu

The Minister represented by a Permanent Secretary, Mr. Bitrus Bako Nabasu, explained that the Executive Order 5 was a revolutionary instruction, which the present administration had deployed to redirect the economy.

He maintained that the Order was basically to promote patriotism, love of country and economic nationalism as potent tools for a new social engineering of the nation.

Mr. Nabasu said the Order was to give indigenous professionals in the country the chance to participate in the nation’s development, especially in the area of science and technology and compete favourably with their counter-parts in other parts of the world.

According to the Permanent Secretary, the Order is made of 18 sections, all centered on protecting and promoting local professionals and local content in science, Engineering and Technology.

“Gone are the days that we should continuously prepare our resources to drive our economy.

“We should begin to think of an economy that is many things. Nigeria has a lot of professionals,” he said.

The Special Assistant, Technical to the Minister, Mr. Ibiam Ogaluonye, who explained the Order one after the other, said the Presidential Order became necessary to save the country from capital flight.

Mr. Ogaluonye went further to say that “the rule now is that LOTAP we keep data base of the experts in Nigeria. They are being empowered with ICT facilities so that Nigeria will be able to know the experts they have in any part of the world.”

Contributing, the General Manager, Project Development Institute (PRODA) Enugu, Dr. Charles Agulanna, pointed out that the country had technical manpower to drive her industrial and development needs.

According to Mr. Agulanna, “it’s not so, every country in the world still depend on some additional experts elsewhere but it is how we can drive what we have on ground which is the Executive Order No. 5”

The dialogue was attended by heads of Parastatals under the Ministry and other stakeholders in the industry from South East Zone.

OLIVER OSSAI