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From Adanna Nnamani and Francis Onyedikachukwu, Abuja
The National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) has launched a three-month virtual accelerator programme, Xceler8, to help Nigerian science and engineering innovators transform working prototypes into commercial ventures.
The programme, unveiled Monday in Abuja, will select 25 post-minimum viable product (MVP) innovators from across the country and provide them with up to $25,000 in programme support, mentorship, product development assistance and access to investors and industry partners.
Speaking at the launch, Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NASENI, Khalil Halilu, said the initiative was designed to address the gap between innovation and commercialisation in Nigeria.
Halilu, represented by his Special Adviser to on ICT and Emerging Technologies, Mr. Bashir Aliyu, said the country was not short of innovative minds, noting that the real challenge was moving solutions developed in laboratories, universities, workshops and startups from the prototype stage to the market.
He said, “The real test of innovation is what happens after the laboratory. Can that idea become a product? Can that product solve a real problem? Can it reach the people who need it? Can it create jobs, attract investment, compete in the market and ultimately improve lives?”
According to him, Xceler8 would focus on innovators who had already developed functional prototypes or live commercial products and could demonstrate evidence of market demand.
He stressed that the programme was not an idea-generation initiative, but commercialisation and scale programme aimed at helping Nigerian innovators build sustainable businesses around local solutions.
The NASENI boss said the programme will provide participants with business development support, technical guidance, market access, mentorship, industry connections and investment-readiness support.
The agency said applicants must be Nigerian citizens aged between 15 and 40, resident in Nigeria, operating a registered Nigerian entity and able to provide evidence of at least five completed paid transactions. Priority sectors include agrotech, renewable energy, fintech, edtech, healthtech and manufacturing.
Halilu said the programme was part of NASENI’s effort to strengthen the link between science, engineering, industry and economic development.
He noted that commercialising local innovation would create more than products, as it would generate jobs, intellectual property, investment opportunities and new pathways for economic growth.
Also speaking, Co-Executive Director and Director of Programmes at AfriLabs (the implementing partner for NASENI Xceler8), Nanko Madu, said Nigeria had no shortage of talent but lacked sufficient systems to help innovations scale.
Madu said the programme was designed for innovators who had already demonstrated proof of concept, developed an MVP or commercial solution, attracted early customers and established market demand.
He said participants would receive structured support in business development, technical refinement, market access and investment readiness.
According to him, 100 post-MVP innovators are expected to participate across four cohorts over the next year, with Xceler8 serving as the commercialisation engine within NASENI’s broader innovation ecosystem.
He explained that the ecosystem begins with HatchBox, where ideas are nurtured, continues through the NASENI Innovation Hub, where innovators receive business and technical support, and culminates at the NASENI Campus, where high-potential ventures can access infrastructure, partnerships and industrial opportunities.
Madu said the ultimate objective was to transform Nigeria from a nation of innovators into a nation of industrial innovators capable of designing, manufacturing and competing globally.
The programme, he noted, targets the acceleration of 25 startups in the first cohort, creation of at least 100 direct and indirect jobs, five strategic partnerships and measurable improvements in participants’ commercial and investment readiness.
The organisation said the three-month programme would be delivered virtually, while the strongest ventures would have the opportunity to pitch their solutions to investors, industry leaders, policymakers and strategic partners at a physical Demo Day in Abuja.
“This programme is not a gift. It is an investment. NASENI and AfriLabs are making a deliberate bet on your potential because we believe that the future of Nigeria’s industrialisation will be driven by innovators like you. Individuals who can transform science, engineering, and technology into products that solve real problems, create jobs, strengthen industries, and contribute to national prosperity.
“The future will not be built by ideas alone. It will be built by innovators who have the discipline, resilience, and commitment to bring those ideas to life,” he added.
