The Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, said on Tuesday that N200 million had been put aside by the government to support local medical research.
At the current 2022 Annual International Conference on Health Advances, Innovation, and Research (ICHAIR), hosted by the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research (NIMR), Abayomi made his presence known in Lagos.
ICHAIR is a gathering of stakeholders and biomedical professionals from both inside and outside of Nigeria.
He said: “Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu has given us N200 million and it is for the purpose of funding indigenous local research in the state.
“We are presently going through the applications submitted so we can shortlist the applicants while the winners for the grant will be announced next month.
“This will trigger the process for research, innovations and medical advances in health.
“The governor also funded COVID-19 research to the tune of N300 million and this research has resulted in 40 journal articles and was made possible through a partnership with various health institutions such as NIMR”
The commissioner continued by saying that there were also plans to establish a state-wide bureau for intellectual property.
“We are working on an intellectual property desk because it is necessary for our researchers to understand how important their intellectual work is,” he said.
Abayomi exhorted scholars in the nation to do studies that will bring solutions to problems that were unique to our field.
