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By Ojo Tunde
Within the last two years, I have had the privilege of visiting the headquarters of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) on several occasions. Each visit has convinced me that something remarkable—yet often underappreciated—is unfolding within Nigeria’s technology and industrial ecosystem.
NASENI today represents one of the clearest expressions of a government institution that is not only thinking boldly but also executing with speed, precision and purpose. For years, conversations about industrialization in Nigeria have centred on potential. But what I have repeatedly witnessed at NASENI is no longer potential—it is delivery.
Under its current Executive Vice Chairman and CEO, Khalil Suleiman Halilu, the agency has embraced a model that combines innovation, local content and commercialization in ways that are transforming it from a research-driven institution into a production-focused national asset. And the results are becoming visible across multiple sectors.
One of the most impressive aspects of the agency’s work is its commitment to practical solutions that respond directly to national challenges. The solar-powered irrigation pump developed by NASENI is a striking example. Nigeria’s food security has long been constrained by high production costs and dependence on rain-fed agriculture.
Yet, NASENI’s solution—now endorsed for nationwide deployment—offers farmers energy-efficient irrigation that reduces costs and boosts yields. It is the kind of homegrown innovation that not only solves problems but also restores hope in the country’s capacity to engineer its own progress.
The same pattern is evident in the Agency’s work on clean energy and transportation. I witnessed firsthand the rapid scaling of NASENI’s CNG conversion and training centres in Abuja, built to support the country’s ongoing energy transition.
These are not mere pilot projects; they are fully operational facilities converting vehicles, training engineers, and making alternative energy more accessible to ordinary Nigerians. The vision to replicate these centres across all states is ambitious, yes—but it is also deeply necessary. Every converted vehicle is a step toward cleaner air, lower fuel costs, and reduced reliance on imported petroleum derivatives.
Nigeria’s security sector, too, is benefitting from NASENI’s competence. The Agency’s collaboration with the Department of State Services (DSS) has led to the manufacturing of advanced security equipment locally.
While the sensitive details are understandably withheld, what is known is significant: Nigeria now has a state-of-the-art facility jointly operated by NASENI and the DSS, producing equipment that improves surveillance, intelligence, and operational readiness. This is technological sovereignty in action—quietly achieved, skillfully delivered.
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Perhaps, the most transformative initiative I have seen is the National Asset Restoration Programme, which has already revitalized one thousand tractors previously abandoned across the country. Standing among rows of restored agricultural machinery during one of my visits in the early phases of the programme, it became clear how revolutionary this work is.
Rather than spending trillions to import replacements, Nigeria is restoring functionality at a fraction of the cost, creating jobs and reviving productivity in the process. This is how nations build sustainable economic systems—through engineering, not endless consumption.
But beyond machines and facilities, NASENI is building people. Through initiatives like DELT-Her, which funds and mentors female engineers, the Agency has become a platform for young Nigerians—particularly women—to transform bold ideas into real prototypes and viable products.
NASENI’s work is also restoring trust, trust that public institutions can deliver; trust that government can invest strategically; trust that Nigeria can industrialize on its own terms. It is not an exaggeration to say that NASENI has become one of the strongest pillars supporting the government’s industrial and economic agenda.
From renewable energy parks in Nasarawa, to emerging technology institutes in Kano, Kebbi, Katsina, Cross River, Imo states to drone development, automotive components, diagnostic kits biotechnology facility, and advanced manufacturing partnerships, NASENI is redefining what is possible.
And most importantly, it is doing so with transparency, speed, youth inclusion, and a disciplined commitment to results. Nigeria is often described as a country with immense potential. But with institutions like NASENI delivering at this scale, we are beginning to move from potential to performance.
From watching the Agency up close, I am convinced that if Nigeria sustains this momentum; supporting indigenous innovation, backing local production, and scaling initiatives that are already working—the country’s industrial future will no longer be a dream. It will be a reality built by Nigerian hands, Nigerian engineers, and Nigerian institutions.
And NASENI, guided by the young techpreneur, Khalil, without doubt, is showing the way.
•Tunde wrote from Lagos
