ADDRESS BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE NIGERIAN SOCIETY OF ENGINEERS AT THE LAUNCH OF THE BOOK TITLED “NIGERIA MACHINE TOOLS, LOST OPPORTUNITY AND PROSPECTS” AUTHORED BY ENGR. M. B. IBITOLU, FNSE, IN OSOGBO

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GOODWILL MESSAGE BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE NIGERIAN SOCIETY OF ENGINEERS AT THE LAUNCH OF THE BOOK TITLED “NIGERIA MACHINE TOOLS, LOST OPPORTUNITY AND PROSPECTS” AUTHORED BY ENGR. M. B. IBITOLU, FNSE, WHICH CEREMONY HELD ON SATURDAY, MARCH 18, 2017, IN OSOGBO

Protocol

Ladies and Gentlemen

I am delighted to be here today to be part of this auspicious event being the launch of the book titled, “Nigeria Machine Tools Lost Opportunity and the Prospects”, authored by Engr.M. B. Ibitolu our distinguished Fellow.
 
Ibitolu is a proven Engineer of high repute, we are most elated that he has continually put all his knowledge and experience to the advancement and in the drive for the growth of our profession. We sincerely appreciate you for your scholarly activities and by your continuous mentorship of the Young Engineers Future Leaders (YEFL) over the years.

 Engineering capability is key to rejuvenating the economy of any nation by the technological advancement it provokes. Our erudite scholars must continue to come up with publications targeted at knowledge enrichment for us not only to keep pace of trends but become global leaders in engineering feats.

The choice of the title of this book is apt, in view of our efforts towards the strengthening of the country’s economy through diversification. The Nigerian Society of Engineers has at various fora noted the viability of the Machine Tool Industry not only to the speedy recovery of the recessed economy but to our full industrialization.

Most developing countries, including Nigeria, have since the 1980s shown great interest in the promotion of the Machine Tools Industry for being an enabler of economic production of interchangeable parts which contributes substantially to a wide range of developmental objectives. The degree of success in this endeavour varies from country to country, but it is generally believed that countries of South East Asia provide the world the ideal models.

 The place to start is through developing capacity for making machines that make machines – that is Machine Tools. There are machine tools complexes in Ajaokuta, Ovwian/Aladja, and Oshogbo, which are lying fallow. These have to rehabilitated and re-commissioned into commercial activities. More machine tools factories would need to be established for increased and further diversification of product slates.

It is all in our quest in the direction of bringing our machine tools industry back up-stream that we have requested the National Assembly to urgently pass the Metallurgical Industry, Iron and Steel development bill into law.
This matter was top on the agenda when I hosted Engineers elected into the National Assembly to a dinner at the National Engineering Centre Headquarters in Abuja, on Wednesday, September 23, 2016.

At that meeting, I told the Legislators that the Metallurgical industry laws as passed by the immediate past assembly lacked the ability to turn around the country’s fortunes by enabling large scale industrialization, hence the need for the lawmakers to consider the version submitted by the Society which has taken into cognizance such vital element.

Ladies and Gentlemen, there is no doubt, our sustained economic growth and development in Nigeria is dependent on rising economic productivity, expansion of trade and commerce; this cannot be attained without sustained improvement in increasing human capacity. Therefore, I find the publication of this book and its placement in the public domain as another lee way towards capacity development as well as a vital intrument of consultation by our policy makers for good decision making.

I am optimistic that the submissions by our erudite scholar in this publication will definitely chart the course for our progress in the right direction.

I thank you for your attention and wish you fruitful deliberations and successful launch of this vital book.
Thank you and God bless you.

Engr. Otis Anyaeji, FNSE FAEng

President

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