The recent kudos for it exemplary performances by the Bureau of Public Service Reforms (BPRS) on the National Space research, and development Agency, (NASRDA) is a testament of the workings of the reforms embarked upon by the director general of the agency, Dr. Halilu Ahmed Shaba and his management of the agency.
This commendation which is coming against the back heel of the just concluded assessments of government agencies by the BPRS was because of the fact that the National space research and development agencies performed excellently well in the assessment report and this shows and reflects the fact that the agency is now totally dedicated to excellence and commitment to public service.
The assessment report of NASRDA, which was presented at the BPRS headquarters in Abuja necessitated this commendations by no other person than the chief assessor and the director general of the BPRS, Mr. Ibrahim Arab and this also reflect the renewed hope changing narratives at NASRDA. The agency was exceptionally and singularly given this kudos because of what it is exceptionally doing differently from other agencies of government and this includes what it is doing over the years as it regards its core mandate and where it felt short, so that it can devise ways of strengthening.
We can all acknowledge the fact that the reforms being introduced and systematically implemented by Halilu Shaba since his assumption of office at the agency is gradually taking the agency back to what it is suppose to be. He is reaching out to other sister agencies on what is needed to reach out through shared vision so that they can work together because of the fact that NASRDA as an agency do not have all the resources but to put its hands across to other people so that it could come together for the betterment o the country.
It could be recall that since 2011, NASRDA has embarked on the task itself of re-jigging the scientific community of Nigeria, the research arena and changing the culture of research so that Nigeria and Nigerians will benefit from it. The agency is also changing the situation whereby the science community is running on eight hours research culture to 24 hours culture so that it can compete with other countries of the world and economies.
This greatly changing the country’s research narrative, output and identifying key outputs that are essential to the country and the agency is becoming people – based because of the fact that it is now looking at the community and what it needs so that it can change all it’s facets to be responsible to the communities and also be demand driven. This is what NASRDA has done differently under Dr. Shaba that it is now getting all the applause and kudos that it deserve.
The relevance of NASRDA Earth Observation Service (OBS) tool is on what it is doing on flooding, natural disasters occasioned by climate change as the agency as since 2022 been producing maps of areas that we are flooded across the country and passed over to agencies that were in charge of flooding for necessary actions. It is also in the process in conjunction with the Chinese government setting up seismic stations in the country to identify where earth quakes are likely to happen for necessary action because before people cannot even link earth quake with flood because when you have this issues you have new drainage are created which are also threats to flooding and NASRDA has so much in terms of flood management and what it is trying to do now is to link to other African countries who do not have the capacity and the facility to deal with this.
Nigerian has through NASRDA been serving as te regional support service for U.S spider and it is this body that activate charts any time there is flood so it is imperative that the federal government through NASRDA synergize by engaging other actors that are managing this disaster and it is now doing so.
So it is important for us all to celebrate the fact that NASRDA is now getting it right through the effort of his its director general who is systematically and pragmatically changing the overall scientific culture in the country and the narratives of NASRDA as an agency. Going forward we expect more from this reformist director general, Dr. Halilu Ahmed Shaba.
Musa Wada
Abuja
