AUST, NILDS,STICOMMS 2025 Partner to Strengthen Science-Policy-Industry Linkages

ABUJA, NIGERIA – The African University of Science and Technology (AUST), Abuja, has taken a significant step toward fostering stronger ties between science, policy, and industry as part of preparations for the 1st National Conference on Science, Technology, and Innovation Communication (STICOMMS 2025).

Today, Tuesday, July 11, 2025, the President of AUST, Professor Peter Azikiwe Onwualu, led a delegation of key leaders of the Local Organizing Committee (LOC) - Dr. Bosco Okolo-obi, Chairman LOC and Mr. Segun Olusegun Ayeoyenikan, Director of Information, National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) - to the headquarters of the National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies (NILDS) in Abuja. The team was warmly received by the Director General of NILDS, Professor Abubakar Sulaiman, alongside key members of the Institute’s senior management.

In his remarks, Prof. Onwualu noted that AUST was established as a Pan-African postgraduate institute with a mandate to train the next generation of African researchers. While the University began with a focus on postgraduate training, it has since expanded to include undergraduate programs. Prof. Onwualu emphasized the importance of Science, Technology, and Innovation (STI) in addressing Africa’s developmental challenges, particularly in today’s era of emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence.

He explained that one of the major challenges hindering the impact of scientific research is the disconnect between researchers, policymakers, and industry players. “This communication breakdown,” he stated, “is a major reason why well-intentioned research outputs often fail to translate into development outcomes.” He referenced the former model in agriculture where research findings were relayed to farmers through extension workers, a structure that has been made ineffective over time.
STICOMMS 2025, he explained, aims to rebuild these broken linkages by bringing together researchers, government agencies, industry stakeholders, and the media to discuss strategies for effectively communicating STI outputs. He stressed that NILDS, as the legislative think tank for both the National and State Assemblies, is a vital partner in this national initiative, hence the courtesy visit to establish a formal collaboration.

In his response, Prof. Abubakar Sulaiman expressed deep appreciation for the visit and affirmed NILDS’ commitment to the partnership. He lamented Nigeria’s historic neglect of science in critical national processes, from education and recruitment to budgeting and policy design. “We are struggling as a nation because we have ignored Science, Technology, and Innovation. We have ignored science in our training, our recruitment, and our funding priorities,” he said.

The DG emphasized that STI has immense potential to solve national challenges including insecurity even before the option of armed intervention. “Technology can deliver real-time surveillance and tracking solutions,” he noted, “but instead, we continue to spend trillions of naira without addressing the root of the problem.”
Prof. Sulaiman expressed full support for STICOMMS 2025 and pledged NILDS’ partnership. He nominated three senior officials; Prof. Bethel Ihugba, Dr. Augustine Osigwe, and Dr. Emily Ikhide to join the conference’s Local Organizing Committee.  Prof. Sulaiman and Prof. Onwualu also proposed the development of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between AUST and NILDS to facilitate joint research initiatives and explore potential grant opportunities.

The meeting concluded with a joint agreement to advance collaboration between both institutions, followed by a group photograph capturing all attendees.