The Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure, Khalil Halilu, has disclosed that Nigeria is being positioned as a driving force for global sustainability and innovation.
Speaking at the 2025 World Association of Young Scientists Conference in Wenzhou City, Zhejiang Province, China, on October 26, 2025, where he delivered a keynote address titled ‘Nigeria at the Heart of Global Sustainability’, Halilu said the bridge between government and the private sector was becoming stronger, turning policy into practical outcomes, according to a statement released on Tuesday.
“This is what progress looks like: policy meets innovation, innovation meets people, and people meet opportunity,” Halilu said.
At the event, he highlighted Nigeria’s growing leadership in clean technology, renewable energy, and green manufacturing, driven by the creativity and energy of its youth.
“Young Nigerians, your ideas, your energy, and your innovation have a place at the global table. The world is watching what we build next. Let us move together,” he added.
Halilu also reaffirmed NASENI’s commitment to domestication, adapting global technology to local realities and needs.
“It is not enough to import technology. We must adapt it. Domestication is how we make global innovation work for us in Nigeria.”
He announced ZeCo by NASENI, an initiative to be launched in 2026, focusing on clean mobility, renewable energy systems, and sustainable manufacturing. The programme reinforces NASENI’s goal of making Nigeria a hub for green innovation and circular economy solutions.
ZeCo by NASENI refers to NASENI’s Zero Carbon, Zero Cost initiative, which aims to promote investment in Nigerian ventures with carbon credit exposure and develop a framework for indigenous carbon and cost-neutral solutions.
According to the agency, the initiative also aligns with its broader goals of promoting indigenous innovation, sustainable development, and economic growth through science and engineering. It is distinct from, but associated with, Nigeria’s first indigenous electric vehicle, also developed by NASENI, which forms part of its vision for a sustainable, carbon-neutral future.
