The federal ministry of science and technology, as part of its mandate to promote indigenous technology transfer from the academia to the industries has established Intellectual Property and Technology Transfer Office (IPTTO) in Kaduna Polytechnic.

Speaking at the commissioning exercise, which was held penultimate week at the College of Science and Technology building, Kaduna Polytechnic main campus, the minister of state for science and technology, Dr. Alhassan Bako Zaku, described the programme as a vital tool and economic asset to invigorate the economy with a view to making Nigeria globally competitive through creating and inventiveness.

He said IPTTO was a programme being conceived and implemented by the National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion (NOTAP) in collaboration with the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO).

According to him, IPTTO was yet another positive step to make science and technology the cornerstone of the National Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy (NEEDS) and the 7-point agenda of President Umaru Musa Yar’adua’s administration.

Dr. Zaku then called on lecturers, researchers and students to take the IPTTO very serious, as the programme has been recognized globally as an economic asset used for wealth creation and employment generation.

In his welcome address, the rector of Kaduna Polytechnic, Dr. Danjuma Ismaila Isa, said through the IPTTO the 7-point agenda of the president would surely be realized.

The rector commended the federal ministry of science and technology and the national office for technology acquisition and promotion (NOTAP) for not only providing an enabling environment to ensure the success of IPTTO but for committing huge resources into the project.

He assured that his institute would make good use of the programme to help set the agenda for technology transfer nationally.