When the on-going infrastructure retooling efforts at the Scientific EquipmentDevelopment Institute (SEDI) Minna sailed through, Nigerians may not have need
to continue importation of science and laboratory equipment for schools and otheruses because, according to the Managing Director/CE of the institute, Prof.
Mohammed Ndaliman, it is a brand new NASENI and its institute-SEDI Minna.SEDI is one of the parastatals of the National Agency for Science and Engineering
Infrastructure (NASENI) whose mandate specifically includes research, production and reverse engineering with respect to develop manufacturing systems for mass
production of school laboratory apparatus for Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Introductory Technology, Integrated Science and all forms of scientific equipment
for research industries and higher institutions in Nigeria.

SEDI also has as its mandate the manufacturing of measuring and control instruments for Electrical, Electronics, Mechanical workshops, those for Artisans,
Industries and utility equipment. These technologies so developed by SEDI Minna are all expected to be transferred as development production technologies to
satellite industries called SMEs.

Speaking at the weekend to newsmen in his office in Minna, Niger State, Professor Ndaliman expressed satisfaction with high expectation for improved funding
mechanisms which had been approved by the Federal Government for NASENI under which SEDI is a parastatal. “Whenever new funding windows get to us, our
plan in SEDI is to build State-of-the-Art manufacturing and production systems to churn out schools science and laboratory equipment such that Nigerians would not need to keep importing into the country science equipment and instruments for student practical and other uses”, he said. Professor Ndaliman used the occasion to acknowledge due honour to the visionary father of the nation, the Chairman of the NASENI Governor Board, His Excellency, President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, and also kudos to the irrepressible passion and doggedness of NASENI’s Executive Vice Chairman/CE, Engr. Prof M.S Haruna. He said the present government is taking right and giant steps to get science and technology to drive the Nigeria economy for the benefit of all sectors of Nigeria.

While lamenting however the negative impacts of importation of science equipment and other materials into the country especially in areas where NASENI
and its institutes have potentials, he said, “Nigeria’s parallel foreign exchange rate is currently rising to about 565 naira to a dollar, even when the official rate is just
about 416 naira and the gaps have continued to widen within the range of 160 between official rate and the parallel market”. He said “that gap exists because of
effects or the fact that almost everything we need in this country is imported. So not just scientific laboratory equipment alone, it is like everything we need we
import and we do not have confidence in using anything that is produced in our own country.

In his further reflections on socio-economic challenges facing the country, Ndaliman, a Professor of Mechanical Engineering, observed that “nations such as India and China are amongst world biggest economies today because they have a national discipline to consume their own products. India particularly should serve as right example to Nigeria. In India, almost everything they want they look inward except if they had tried to produce such things but they could not. That is only
when they will attempt to get them imported”

According to him, this culture by Asians should be the new attitude to socio- economic strategy needed to develop our own country. So our destiny is on our hands and we should look up to SEDI that the institute has the mandate to transfer
its production systems of scientific apparatus and all laboratory equipment to the private sector for onward mass production and commercialization. The Managing Director used the opportunity of the media parley to invite Nigeria entrepreneurs to come to take over the technology behind SEDI science equipment production systems and to do business with them. “By so doing, we will be strengthening our economy and also reduce the cost of foreign exchange used for importation of all manner of items into the country” he said. He listed some of the achievements of SEDI Minna in almost 30 years of existence of the Institute to include “We have been able to come up with various science kits.

We call them junior secondary science kits (JSK) and also we have the Primary  science kits (PSK). There are the mathematical kits.

According to him, this culture by Asians should be the new attitude to socio- conomic strategy needed to develop our own country. So our destiny is on our hands and we should look up to SEDI that the institute has the mandate to transfer
its production systems of scientific apparatus and all laboratory equipment to the private sector for onward mass production and commercialization. The Managing Director used the opportunity of the media parley to invite Nigeria
entrepreneurs to come to take over the technology behind SEDI science equipment production systems and to do business with them. “By so doing, we will be strengthening our economy and also reduce the cost of foreign exchange used for
importation of all manner of items into the country” he said. He listed some of the achievements of SEDI Minna in almost 30 years of existence of the Institute to include “We have been able to come up with various science kits. We call them junior secondary science kits (JSK) and also we have the Primary science kits (PSK). There are the mathematical kits.

All these are innovation to
serve like taking mobile science laboratory to schools. The institute has achieved several reversed engineered equipment by building things like plates ,shaping
machines, glaze mixing machines, screen printing machines and sheet metal splitting machines. Other products of the Institute include ceramic wares,
laboratory measuring cylinders, beakers, funnel, water dispensers, and aspirator bottles. Some of the above mentioned items also have been produced in plastic
forms so they can easily be handled by children in primary and junior secondary school levels than delicate ones produced in glass form. Metallic objects like
burners are produced from our engineering workshop. Apart from laboratory equipment, SEDI has produced rulers, Computer hardware, work station and other
teaching aids. The Institute’s wooding workshop also produces both home and school furniture. In the ceramics section, we produce ceramic cup, flower vase
made from ceramic. In essence let me tell you we have enough to produce as far as our scientific mandate is concerned; it’s just a question of infrastructure and when the infrastructure is perfected every other thing will follow.

Other services offered by the institute include capacity building and skills acquisition programme in areas like school laboratory apparatus for Physics
Chemistry, Biology, Introductory Technology, Integrated Science, scientific equipment for research, industries and higher institutions, measuring and control
instruments for Electrical, Electronics. Mechanical workshops, Artisan workshop etc. industries and utility equipment, Advanced Manufacturing Services, Foundry
practice, Metal fabrication, Welding, Metal work/Machine assembly, Electroplating Services, development of components, Machineries and their processes, ceding of R&Ds outcome to SMEs, collaboration with public and private organizations in the relevant areas.