The National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion (NOTAP) says it has concluded plans to hold a two-day national workshop to fast track technology transfer agreements and technology domestication in the country.

Dr Umar Bindir, the Director General of NOTAP, said this in an interview with newsmen on Monday in Abuja.

He said that the agency would hold the workshop in collaboration with the Julius Berger Nigeria Plc.

Bindir said that the workshop became necessary because most of the technology transfer agreements and contracts entered into by most Nigerian construction companies were not in line with the country’s technology transfer agreements clauses.

He said that many companies failed to source their raw materials and experts from the country even when they were available.

“Most importantly, on the technical and technological perspective, most of the agreements do not have the training and capacity building components at the high level of the technologies that they are delivering in Nigeria.

“They do not have issues related to research and development being done in Nigeria.”

He, however, said such developments were not realistic and would not augur well for the country.

Bindir said NOTAP had been sensitising companies on the necessary requirement for technology transfer agreements in the county, adding that the efforts had not yielded the expected results.

He said the workshop would be used by stakeholders in the construction industry to discuss and address issues hindering technology transfer in the sector.

According to him, this will help to point the way forward in ensuring that Nigerians were considered in rendering technical-know-how services required in the industry.

He further said: “We hope that if they understand much more clearly the requirements for the registration, more foreign exchange will be saved from the bogus technology transfer agreements that some of these companies sign sometimes.

“Literarily, on one side, you will see a lot of job creations due to the utilisation of Nigerian raw materials and due to utilisation companies.

“On the other side, you will see Nigeria benefiting when it comes to financial savings based on the reduction of the technology transfer fees requested by these companies.

“So, we hope it will facilitate technology transfer and technology domestication so that we can also be players in this industry.”

He equally expressed optimism that the workshop would help to create and strengthen the linkage, between big and small construction companies in the country.

“At the end of the workshop, we also hope that the companies will be partnering with universities and research institutions in research and development as well as in capacity building required to boost the sector,’’ Bindir added.

The workshop with the theme, “Strengthening Technology Transfer Capacities in the Construction Sector in Nigeria,’’ is slated for between Wednesday and Thursday at Sheraton hotel, Lagos.

Expected participants include construction managers, civil and structural engineers, architects, quantity surveyors and valuers as well as soil scientists.

Also expected, are top level policy makers, members of the academia, mortgage financiers, real estate developers, development partners and the general public.