Shettima Calls for Localization of Global Technologies to Solve Nigerian Problems

…Laments Poor Maintenance that Leaves Nigeria with Over 26,000 Broken-down Serviceable Heavy-duty Equipment

By: Michael Mike

Vice President Kashim Shettima has called for the localization of global technologies in order to create durable Nigerian solutions to Nigerian problems, insisting that relevant agencies must be supported to point Nigeria towards a stabler nation and promising future.

Speaking at the official launch of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) Asset Restoration Programme in Maiduguri on Sunday, Shettima decried that data available shows that Nigeria currently holds over 26,000 units of broken-down but serviceable heavy-duty equipment and nearly 500,000 component scraps that can be restored or repurposed.

The Vice President however said this contrasts with the stark reality there is only 7,000 to 12,000 functional tractors in a country that needs 2.4 million tractor units to meet its food production goals over the next decade.

He lamented that: “For so long, Nigeria has been profiled as a nation with poor maintenance culture. This dysfunction cuts across both the private and public sectors, and we owe it to ourselves to say enough is enough.

“Enough of investing our scarce resources in ideas and projects that get abandoned halfway through. Enough of allowing our critical assets to lie in waste while we budget, year after year, for the problems they were procured to solve. This is why I’m excited about the purpose of this gathering.

“This initiative, NASENI Asset Restoration Programme, is a response to our cross-generational dilemma about what to do with abandoned and poorly maintained assets of the nation, of the people. It’s a powerful shift in how we think about value, sustainability, and innovation, and I believe that’s what we’ve promised the nation.

“The data at our disposal shows that Nigeria currently holds over 26,000 units of broken-down but serviceable heavy-duty equipment and nearly 500,000 component scraps that can be restored or repurposed. This contrasts with the stark reality that we have only 7,000 to 12,000 functional tractors in a country that needs 2.4 million tractor units to meet our food production goals over the next decade.”

He noted that these figures are a reminder of what must be done, a reason to have a national inventory of value waiting to be unlocked, adding that: “We must commend NASENI, through this Asset Restoration Programme, for stepping forward with this brilliant idea to mitigate a national tragedy.”

He said beyond this promise to refurbish hardware, NASENI has shown a great capacity to serve as a national nerve centre for technology transfer, homegrown engineering, and adaptive innovation,” stating that this is why NASENI must be supported.

He noted that: “We have seen NASENI at work, playing critical roles in our interventions in compressed natural gas (CNG) retrofitting, renewable energy technologies, and agricultural mechanization. We are reminded more than ever that we can’t create durable Nigerian solutions to Nigerian problems unless we localize global technologies, and relevant agencies must be supported to point us towards a stabler nation and promising future.

“The Asset Restoration Programme fits squarely within the broader vision of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration: to build a productive, self-reliant, and diversified economy. Our goal, therefore, is to ease this transition to expand the potential and productivity of Nigeria’s agricultural, industrial, and creative sectors through smart investments in infrastructure, skills, and innovation.”

He added that: “The Executive Vice Chairman of NASENI, Mr. Khalil Suleiman Halilu, has shown both vision and urgency in our collective quests for solutions. The direction NASENI is headed is one driven by action, impact, innovation, and awareness of what the nation needs. It takes clarity of purpose to embark on a mission such as this:”

Earlier, in his remarks, Borno State Governor, Prof. Babagana Zulum, said the restoration programme by NASENI is the response to a cross generational dilemma about what to do with abandoned and poorly maintained assets of the nation.

He said that NASENI has shown a great capacity to serve as a nation’s nerve centre for technology transfer, home grown engineering, and adaptive innovation.

Zulum said: “This is why we must support them. We are reminded more than ever that we can create durable Nigerian solutions to Nigerian problems unless we localise global technologies, and relevant agencies must be supported. The point is stable nation and promising future.”

The Executive Vice Chairman of NASENI, Khalil Suleiman Halilu, on his part, said the reason this programme matters is because the agency’s national survey revealed that Nigeria holds over 47,000 broken-down but serviceable agricultural and law enforcement assets,” adding that the cost to replace them would exceed ₦14 trillion.

He said: “Today is not just the launch of a programme- it is the ignition of a national movement. A movement built on possibility, practicality, and partnership.

“When we set out to design the Asset Restoration Programme at NASENI, we were not just looking for another project to tick off. We were confronting a reality: that all across Nigeria, from farms to security outposts, public assets worth trillions of naira had been written off, locked away, or left to rust- not because they were beyond repair, but because there was no clear system to bring them back to life.”

He added that this programme is one more step in NASENI’s mission to keep innovation at the heart of governance, stating that whether it is through clean energy, mechatronics, or the domestication of advanced technologies, NASENI is showing that Nigerian problems can have Nigerian-engineered solutions.

He said: “We are building local capacity, developing talent pipelines, and enabling technology transfer at scale. We are turning NASENI into a true national enabler—quietly but boldly proving that government can deliver, and that transformation is possible.

“No movement thrives in isolation. Let me express my deepest gratitude to the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, His Excellency Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and to His Excellency, the Vice President, Kashim Shettima, for their endless support, their belief in our mission, and their constant encouragement that we must not only think big- but act fast.

“To the Borno State Government, and especially Governor Babagana Umara Zulum, thank you for being a trailblazing partner. Your support and leadership have helped us bring this vision to life here on Borno soil- turning your state into the first node in this national restoration network.

“To our implementation partner, MECA, thank you for bringing global expertise, systems thinking, and a can-do spirit that perfectly matches our urgency. You have proven that when we bridge public vision with private execution, incredible things happen,” he said.

Shettima Calls for Localization of Global Technologies to Solve Nigerian Problems