Oluwatobi Otekaye, the President, University of Lagos Engineering Society, on Wednesday said Nigeria could not truly be industrialised because of its heavy dependence on imported technologies.
Mr Otekaye made the assertion in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, in Lagos.
According to him, imported technologies from industrialised nations are tailored to meet the needs of already developed economies.
“Technology has been of incalculable benefits to mankind because of its important role in the industrialisation process,’’ he said.
He said that Faculty of Engineering of the University of Lagos had therefore concluded plans to hold the second edition of the late Ayodele Awojobi Design Competition scheduled for June 23.
He said the design competition was aimed at sparking ingenuity in the youthful minds to solve societal challenges by applying the knowledge of science and technology.
“The competition, which is basically for engineering students of tertiary institutions across the country is an idea borne out of the creative thinking and resourcefulness of some concerned individuals in the Faculty of Engineering, University of Lagos,’’ he said.
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Mr Otekaye said that the maiden edition of the competition, which was held on July 14, 2017, was the first of its kind, won by a Team Mustafa from the Ladoke Akintola University.
“The team designed an ultra-sound reversing guide and micro controller for vehicles to reduce the frequency of road accidents and went ahead to win a cash prize of N200, 000 as the overall winner.
“With that maiden edition of the competition, we have succeeded in beginning the long awaited shift in the Nigerian mentality, such that as citizens, we will begin to see ourselves as resources for solutions to the challenges we face daily,” he said.
According to him, this year’s competition has received hundreds of innovative entries from engineering students in over 20 universities across the country.
Mr Otekaye said that the major requirements for the design competition for the finals include impact, innovation, efficiency and feasibility, manufacturability and presentation of the projects.
He said that over 2,000 participants from around the country, including key players in the Nigerian technology ecosystem were expected.
He said winners would be going home with cash prize, design sponsorship and internship opportunities.
DAILY NIGERIAN reports that the competition is named after the late professor, who was an academician, author and inventor.
NAN
