Senate moves to fund research with 20% of Nigerian Content Development Fund

The Senate on Thursday passed for second reading a bill that would set up a National Research and Innovation Development Fund and a National Council on Research and Innovation, as lawmakers push to turn university and laboratory work into products Nigerians can use.

The bill, titled the National Research and Innovation Development Fund and National Council on Research and Innovation (Establishment) Bill, 2026 (SB. 1069), is an executive bill sponsored by the Senate Leader, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele (APC, Ekiti Central). It was first read on Tuesday, 13 October 2026, and was debated on the floor by the Senate Chief Whip, Senator Tahir Monguno (APC, Borno North).

After the debate, the bill was referred to the Senate Committee on Tertiary Institutions and TETFund, which is expected to report back in four weeks.

Where the money would come from

Under Section 19 of the proposed law, the fund would draw an annual contribution equal to 20 per cent of the Nigerian Content Development Fund, alongside money appropriated by the National Assembly, grants, donations, endowments, income from patents and commercialisation, and investment income.

Section 20 lists what the money could pay for: research grants, innovation projects, research infrastructure, product development and prototyping, indigenous technology, intellectual property, technology transfer, training and the commercialisation of research results.

Section 21 would cap administrative spending at no more than 25 per cent of the yearly Nigerian Content Development Fund contribution, so that most of the money goes to research rather than running costs.

Monguno said Nigeria already has universities, polytechnics, research institutes, professional academies and technology entrepreneurs, but their work is not well coordinated or funded. He argued that research should not stay in journals and laboratories but should become goods, services and technologies that improve people's lives.

He said the fund could support local solutions in agriculture, healthcare, education, manufacturing and environmental management, and create opportunities for young Nigerians, private investors and Nigerians abroad.

Other senators backed the plan. Senator Samson Ekong said the country would have gone further if research and innovation had been taken seriously in education. Senator Tokunbo Abiru, who chairs the Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and Other Financial Institutions, described research and innovation as key to creativity and said he was confident in the proposed governance structure.

The bill also sets rules on who owns intellectual property from funded research, and provides for annual estimates, audits, annual reports and oversight by the proposed council and a Joint Ministerial Committee. It proposes penalties for diverting or misusing grants, failing to account for funds, giving false information, obstructing officials and conflicts of interest.

Monguno warned that the fund would only work with clear priorities, strict screening of research proposals, measurable results and close monitoring of funded projects.

What happens next

The Committee on Tertiary Institutions and TETFund will examine the bill and report back to the Senate in four weeks. If it scales third reading and is signed into law, the fund and council would be set up, and the 20 per cent contribution from the Nigerian Content Development Fund would begin.