In a major stride toward advancing pharmaceutical research, innovation, and capacity building, the Nasarawa State University, Keffi (NSUK), and the National Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NIPRD) are poised to establish a strategic and mutually beneficial collaboration.
This initiative took shape during a courtesy visit by the Vice-Chancellor of NSUK, Professor Sa’adatu Hassan Liman, to the Director-General/CEO of NIPRD, Dr. Obi Adigwe, at the Institute’s headquarters in Abuja.
In her remarks, Professor Liman described the visit as more than an expression of institutional goodwill—it is a deliberate step towards fostering a robust partnership with one of Nigeria’s premier pharmaceutical research institutions. She emphasized that as NSUK strives to fulfill its core mandates of teaching, research, and community service, it is increasingly committed to forming strategic alliances that can support applied research, drive innovation, and contribute meaningfully to national development.
The Vice-Chancellor lauded NIPRD’s exceptional contributions to public health, pharmaceutical innovation, and the validation of indigenous knowledge systems. She commended Dr. Adigwe’s leadership, particularly in developing homegrown remedies that advance pharmaceutical science.
“At NSUK, we are currently repositioning our academic and research programmes to align with national priorities and global imperatives,” she noted. “These include health innovation, traditional medicine validation, and entrepreneurship in pharmaceutical sciences.”
Professor Liman outlined key areas of proposed collaboration, including:
Joint Research Projects in drug development, ethnopharmacology, and phytomedicine;
Capacity Building and Staff Exchange programmes in pharmaceutical and related disciplines;
Postgraduate Training and Supervision at the MSc and PhD levels;
Commercialisation of Research Outcomes through NSUK’s Entrepreneurship Development Centre and Innovation Hub;
Internship and Industrial Training Placements for students in health science programmes.
She expressed confidence that a partnership with NIPRD would open new frontiers for research excellence and foster practical learning opportunities for students and researchers alike.
In his response, Dr. Obi Adigwe congratulated Professor Liman on her historic appointment as the first female Vice-Chancellor of NSUK. He commended her leadership and noted that he had been closely observing the remarkable progress of the university under her tenure.
Dr. Adigwe affirmed NIPRD’s readiness to partner with NSUK in a collaboration that promises mutual benefits. To actualize this, both parties agreed to establish a joint committee tasked with developing the framework for a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that will formalize and guide the partnership.
This emerging alliance between NSUK and NIPRD is expected to catalyze innovation, strengthen academic-industry linkages, and significantly contribute to Nigeria’s pharmaceutical and health research landscape.
Information and Protocol Unit, 2025.