By Kwin Israel, The Sight News
The Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) has marked a milestone in research and innovation as academics and researchers from tertiary institutions across Nigeria unveiled prototypes developed by eleven participating teams.
Executive Secretary of TETFund, Arc. Sonny Echono stated this at the closing event and Demo Day for the TETFund Alliance for Innovative Research (TETFAIR) in Abuja on Thursday.
The programme is in partnership with the Academic Solutions Incubation Programme (ASIP), the Science Granting Council Initiative (SGCI), and the INCUB8 Programmes at Innov8 Technology Hub, Abuja.
Speaking at the event, the TETFund boss expressed gratitude to participants for their support of the Fund’s commitment to advancing research and development in Nigeria, highlighting TETFund’s role as a government agency mandated to intervene in Nigeria’s tertiary education sector.
“Your presence demonstrates support for the Fund’s unwavering commitment to advancing research and development in Nigeria.
“Over the years, various initiatives, policies, and strategies have been introduced to reduce unemployment, alleviate poverty, and improve our socio-economic well-being.
“Yet many challenges persist. It has therefore become imperative to adopt a more sustainable approach rooted in science, technology, and innovation,” he said.
Arch. Echono explained that the initiative began with the launch of the Research for Impact (R4i) and Transformative Innovation Workshop (TIW) programmes in 2021, and expanded to include TETFAIR in 2022, followed by ASIP, the facilitation of SGCI-funded projects, and the INCUB8 programmes in 2024.
According to him, these initiatives offer a structured pathway for research commercialisation, ranging from six-week intensive training sessions to year-long incubation cycles.
“These programmes are designed to equip our researchers and academics with the technical support, mentorship, resources, and enabling environment needed to transform groundbreaking ideas into viable, real-world solutions,” he noted.
He also emphasised that the programmes target key national priorities, including agriculture and food technology, environment, energy and circular economy, health and accessibility, information and communication technology, security, transportation and shipping, and production process improvement.
The event also involved a pitch session where eleven teams from across the country presented their prototypes.
The Polytechnic of Ibadan team presented Funfit, a gamified fitness device that generates electricity as users exercise while Ramat Polytechnic, Maiduguri, showcased Rampokids, a nutritious cereal for children aged 2-5 made from locally sourced ingredients. Also, Federal Polytechnic, Ede, Osun State, demonstrated Powermantech, and Federal Polytechnic, Ado Ekiti, unveiled Ecopave.
Meanwhile, Federal College of Education Technical, Umunze, introduced Orufe, a cassava shredding machine, while Federal College of Education, Pankshin, presented Agromareh, an AI-powered crop health monitoring platform.
On its part, Federal College of Education, Katsina, revealed Agromech, a motorised hand-guided two-row planter and Usman Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, displayed Solarmilkpro, a solar-powered milking machine.
In the same vein, the University of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, Umuagwo, Imo State, introduced Agronova Dryer, a hybrid solar dryer.
Also, Modibo Adama University showcased Flo-Vend, an automated web-enabled menstrual materials vending machine, and Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, unveiled Tripleshield Agro, an eco-innovative pesticide solution.
