Economy: Gwandu visits Czech Embassy for collaboration, update on Delta2 Project

*The National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure discloses  the Delta2 Project is meant to be a bilateral collaboration between Nigeria and the Czech Republic to foster infrastructure development, manufacturing and innovation to facilitate Made-in-Nigeria technologies and products

Alexander Davis | ConsumerConnect

Dr. Bashir Gwandu, Executive Vice-Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (EVC/CEO) of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), has visited His Excellency Zdeněk Krejčí, Ambassador of Czech Republic to Nigeria, for business collaboration and fact-finding on Delta2 Project in the West African country.

Dr. Gwandu, who paid a courtesy call to the Czech ambassador in Nigeria in his office Friday, August 18, 2023, in Abuja, FCT, said he was on a fact-finding visit to know why the project which was supposed to benefit Nigeria’s technology companies and entrepreneurs and the country’s economic development failed.

The regulatory agency, inna statement, noted the Delta2 Project was supposed to be a bilateral collaboration between the governments of Nigeria (represented by NASENI) and the Czech Republic (represented by Technology Agency of Czech Republic, TA CR) that would ensure take-off of projects that would foster growth and expansion of infrastructure, manufacturing and innovation in Nigeria leading to Made-in-Nigeria technologies and products.

NASENI said Gwandu informed the envoy, that the new administration at

agency is ready to work with the Czech Government to drive Nigeria’s industrialisation agenda and attract new investments in the country that would ensure domestication of technologies through partnerships.

According to the Executive Vice-Chairman, the NASENI mandate is to ensure that the country produces most of the goods and services it currently imports of which Nigeria has the capability to produce locally, thus developing the country’s economy and creating jobs for millions of Nigerians.

Gwandu further stated: “I ant us to work on government-to-government level on new initiatives we embark on.

“We want a relationship that is beneficial to our country. We have a lot of companies we are reaching out.”

He said: “We want to work with Czech government and companies. We want them to come here and start producing and domesticating technologies. We want to industrialise Nigeria.

“We want Czech companies to come and invest here in Nigeria and have partnership with us.”

NASENI is working on new initiatives that would accelerate Nigeria’s industrialisation and would partner companies from Czech Republic and other countries ready to set up factories and industrial base in Nigeria, said he.

Responding, the Czech Ambassador to Nigeria commended the EVC/CEO of NASENI and his team for making out time to visit him at the embassy to enquire on why Delta2 Project did not take off.

Krejčí said his country is ready to work with NASENI on scientific cooperations.

The envoy stated: “We await your new initiatives. In our country we have a grant agency and a technology agency responsible for scientific cooperations and also the academy of sciences which will be beneficial to you.

“We have about two or three companies that are ready to work with you and three universities working with tropical agriculture. I think they deserve your cooperation.”

These organisation, Krejčí disclosed, are ready to work with NASENI to make the new initiatives fruitful in Nigeria.