NASENI Awards N70.5 Million Grant To 6 Female Engineers Under DELT-Her Initiative

L-R: Representative of the executive vice chairman, National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure, Dr. Nonyem Onyechi; Chairman, Presidential Implementation Committee on Technology Transfer, Dr. Dahiru Mohammed; and some winners of the Developing Engineering Leaders Through Her initiative call for proposal at the presentation of cheques to the winners at the agency’s headquarters in Abuja.

The National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), through its Presidential Implementation Committee on Technology Transfer (PICTT), has awarded N70.5 million in grants to six female engineers under the Developing Engineering Leaders Through Her (DELT-Her) initiative. 

The grants were awarded following a call for proposals under NASENI’s Delta-2 programme.

Launched on March 8, 2024, to mark International Women’s Day, the DELT-Her project aims to address gender imbalance in engineering and technology in Nigeria by supporting innovative ideas and projects from young female engineers.

At the grant award ceremony, held on Tuesday at NASENI headquarters in Abuja, the executive vice chairman/CEO of NASENI, Mr. Khalil Halilu represented by the coordinating director of the planning and business development directorate, Dr. Nonyem Onyechi highlighted the project’s focus on empowering women in engineering and technology. 

“The DELT-Her initiative is designed to provide young women with the tools, platforms and support necessary to excel in traditionally male-dominated fields,” said Halilu. “The selected projects not only challenge the status quo but also have the potential to solve real-world problems.”

He encouraged the awardees to view their success as a beacon for others and reaffirmed NASENI’s commitment to creating environments where women can thrive in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).

The Chairman of PICTT, Dr. Mohammed Dahiru, revealed that after evaluating more than 120 applications, six outstanding projects were selected for funding. “Today’s event marks the planting of seeds that will contribute to Nigeria’s technological advancement,” Dahiru noted. “As we celebrate the awardees’ achievements, we hope to inspire the younger generation to embrace science and engineering.”

The six recipients will receive financial grants, technical support, and access to partners for commercialization. Additionally, some of the awardees will participate in the AFRI. Lab annual gathering in Cape Town, South Africa, to showcase their projects.

The grant recipients and their projects are: 

1. Engr. Rukkaya Abdulmutalib: Artificial Intelligence-Censored Machine to Monitor Soil Health for Greenhouses (N3m)

2. Patience Ibrahim-Janda: Automobile Brake Pads Produced from Organic Waste (N10m)

3. Engr. Amina Ibrahim Khaleel: Drone for Intelligent Real-Time Security and Target Tracking (N17.5m)

4. Engr. Dr. Kudirat Oyewumi Jimoh: Electronic Training Board for Science and Engineering Students (N16.5m)

5. Engr. Dr. Ikechukwu Ijeoma Francisca: Automatic Bambara Flour Processing Machine (N8.5m)

6. Engr. Abisola Ayomide Olayiwola: Solar-Powered Snail Shelling Machine (N15m)

In commemoration of the International Day of the Girl Child, four junior secondary schools also exhibited their innovative and technological devices at the event. Schools included Junior Secondary School Jikwoyi 1, which showcased a fuel-less generator, and Junior Secondary School Pasali, which presented a mini refinery converting waste plastics into usable fuels and gas.

Other schools that participated were Junior Secondary School Phase 3, Gwagwalada, with a solar-powered sea planting and spraying machine and Junior Secondary School Kuje, which demonstrated a methane gas conversion system.