We are yet in another historic moment! Our dear nation, Nigeria, is already agog with its centenary celebration. We are celebrating 100 years of our existence as a nation. This celebration, marking the January 1914 amalgamation of the Southern and Northern Protectorate by the then Governor-General, Lord Lugard, is one epoch that will remain green in the history and antecedents of this great nation.
But much more in the history of any nation is the change that has taken place in the life of its citizens. These changes are historic and are expressions and direct consequence of intellectual development – a new manner of thinking, a new way of seeing the world – inevitably brings about the changes in man’s activity (even in his everyday life).
May I remind us that the scientific discoveries of the past provided the foundation for our own technology, our own medicine, our own advanced sciences, and this is assuredly one of the most important aspects of history. The history of scientific enquiry, no doubt, belongs to the essential substance of history, and for this reason, the history of our nation is incomplete without a sprinkling of her contributions in science and technology, and the individuals that have advanced such.
In recognition of the above, President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan GCFR, in a presidential statement on the new National Science, Technology and Innovation Policy launched October 9 2012 by the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology said, “The history of our nation is replete with great scientific and technological innovations that have been recognized in modern history”. The time is therefore ripe for the public to know these scientific and technological contributions and the individuals that have brought them about, and this is the linkage between the bookGreat Nigerian Scientists and Nigeria’s centenary celebration.
I therefore urge that you join us as we celebrate and etch in stone a befitting memorial for these Nigerian people in science. This is indeed an essential aspect of our history.
But much more in the history of any nation is the change that has taken place in the life of its citizens. These changes are historic and are expressions and direct consequence of intellectual development – a new manner of thinking, a new way of seeing the world – inevitably brings about the changes in man’s activity (even in his everyday life).
May I remind us that the scientific discoveries of the past provided the foundation for our own technology, our own medicine, our own advanced sciences, and this is assuredly one of the most important aspects of history. The history of scientific enquiry, no doubt, belongs to the essential substance of history, and for this reason, the history of our nation is incomplete without a sprinkling of her contributions in science and technology, and the individuals that have advanced such.
In recognition of the above, President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan GCFR, in a presidential statement on the new National Science, Technology and Innovation Policy launched October 9 2012 by the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology said, “The history of our nation is replete with great scientific and technological innovations that have been recognized in modern history”. The time is therefore ripe for the public to know these scientific and technological contributions and the individuals that have brought them about, and this is the linkage between the bookGreat Nigerian Scientists and Nigeria’s centenary celebration.
I therefore urge that you join us as we celebrate and etch in stone a befitting memorial for these Nigerian people in science. This is indeed an essential aspect of our history.
CHIGOZIE UBANI
Author, Great Nigerian Scientists
And Chairman, Global Science Development Initiatives
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