...Space...

Over Sixteen Billion Naira has been generated through technology acquisition and registration of intellectual property rights in the country.

The Minister of Science and Technology, Eta Okon Bassey Ewa stated this at the ongoing 2012 Ministerial platform, one year score card, organized by Ministry of Information in Abuja.

Prof. Ita Okon Bassey, said that Nigeria would by 2015 put its first set of astronauts to space.

He said the move was part of government efforts to boost the economy through space technology.

He also said technology transfer agreements between Nigerian entrepreneurs and their technical partners abroad had saved Nigeria over N16 billion between May 2011 and March 2012.

He said the ministry signed eight Memoranda of Understanding (MoU), with private sector companies for use of technologies developed by parastatals of the ministry.

He called on the Ministries of Defence and Interior to patronize the ministry by buying their military boots and other accessories from it.

He noted that the ministry had already trained over 150 entrepreneur’s from Benue, Kaduna, Kano and Sokoto states, adding that these had created jobs for so many youths in that area.

He assured Nigerians that more youths would be trained on the making of leather foot wears.

He stressed the need for the Federal Government to invest more on technical technology which could create one million jobs in three years, while tomato paste industry could create 500,000 jobs in three years.