The National Centre for Technology Management (NACETEM) was established by the Federal Government of Nigeria in September 1992 as a Parastatal of the Federal Ministry of Science & Technology
Sited at Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria, it is the first of such national centres established in Africa as a follow-up to the recommendations of the UNESCO-sponsored Second Conference of Ministers Responsible for Application of Science and Technology to the Socio-economic Development of Africa (CASTAFRICA II) held in Arusha, Tanzania, in July 1987. The establishment thus fulfilled one of the recommendations of CASTAFRICA II calling for the development and harmonization of human resources needed to promote, project and propagate technology management in Nigeria and Africa .
Since the mid-1970s, Africa has been the only continent where Science and Technology (S&T) policies are still made by mere intelligent guesses. This is a result of shortage of adequately trained professionals in S&T policy whose inputs could have informed the formulation of suitable policies to enable S&T drive rapid economic growth by enhancing economic competitiveness and generating employment for the teaming masses.
It was in realisation of this that NACETEM was established. NACETEM's establishment at the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, is as a result of the immense capablilities offered by the University, which as at 1983, the only University in Africa running Post Graduate Programme in Technology Management through its Technology Planning and Development Unit (TPDU).
Technology Management is an area of vital interest to Government and private business firms. It is a field that is concerned with planning, development, use and diffusion of technology as well as its application in industry, its impacts on the social, economic, cultural, advanced countries, technology innovation and management are now a fundamental part of Government strategy for international and industrial competitiveness. However, developing countries especially those in Sub-Sahara Africa are yet to appreciate the critical and pivotal role of technology management in the overall development process. Hence these countries including Nigeria, have not been able to achieve significant level of development decades after gaining political independence.
The National Centre for Technology Management is therefore positioned to address the problems through capacity building, policy research and consultancy services in the areas of science, technology and innovation management.
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