Joseph Bakare
The National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) has launched the NASENI xceler8 Programme, a strategic accelerator initiative designed to help Nigerian innovators transform scientific and engineering breakthroughs into commercially successful businesses.
The programme is being implemented by the NASENI Innovation Hub in partnership with AfriLabs, Africa’s largest network of innovation and technology hubs. The initiative aims to accelerate 100 innovators, refine 100 Minimum Viable Products (MVPs), and create at least 400 direct and indirect jobs across four cohorts.
Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NASENI, Mr. Khalil Suleiman Halilu, represented by his Special Adviser on ICT, Engineer Bashir Aliyu, said the true measure of innovation lies not in the number of ideas, research papers or prototypes developed, but in their ability to become products that solve real problems, attract investment, create jobs and compete in the marketplace.
According to him, the NASENI xceler8 Programme targets innovators who already have functional prototypes, MVPs or live commercial products with evidence of market demand. He explained that participants would receive support in product refinement, business development, market access, technical mentorship, industry networking and investment readiness.
Halilu stressed that commercialization is essential to Nigeria’s economic transformation, noting that innovations that remain in laboratories cannot deliver their full social and economic value. Successful commercialization, he said, creates industries, intellectual property, jobs and investment opportunities while strengthening local problem-solving capacity.
Head of the NASENI Innovation Hub, Mrs. Busola Perez-Folayan, said the programme provides a structured pathway from onboarding and mentorship to market validation and investment readiness. She disclosed that participants would receive acceleration support valued at up to $25,000 per cohort, while the top 10 innovators in each cohort would participate in a Demo Day in Abuja to pitch to investors and industry stakeholders.
The programme is open to Nigerians aged 15 to 40 with functional MVPs or live commercial products and evidence of paying customers. Applicants must present science, engineering or technology-driven solutions and demonstrate a commitment to national development.
Speaking on the partnership, AfriLabs Executive Director, Mrs. Nanko Madu, said the collaboration was driven by a shared vision of building an innovation ecosystem capable of translating Nigerian ingenuity into commercial and industrial success. She noted that AfriLabs’ network of over 540 innovation hubs across 54 African countries would connect participants to mentors, investors, accelerators, corporate partners and markets across the continent.
She observed that Nigeria does not lack talent or ideas but requires stronger systems to help promising innovations move beyond the prototype stage into scalable businesses.
Also speaking, Managing Director of Vidaho Limited, Mr. Austin Onele, highlighted the financing needs of deep-tech ventures, noting that they require substantial investment in research, engineering, certification, manufacturing and commercialization.