State House Banquet Hall, Abuja — July 28, 2025
Protocols.
Distinguished guests, esteemed members of the academic community, representatives of the diplomatic corps, our cherished diaspora professionals, students, and all stakeholders present — good morning.
It is with immense pride and gratitude that I welcome you all to the public unveiling of the Diaspora BRIDGE Initiative — a bold, transformative step by the Federal Ministry of Education to strengthen our nation’s intellectual capital, global partnerships, and research capabilities. Today marks not just a program launch, but the birth of a long-needed national framework to reconnect, reinvest, and reimagine Nigeria’s future through its most powerful resource — its people.
As many of you know, I stand before you not only as Minister of Education, but as a product of Nigeria’s educational system. I trained as a medical doctor here in Nigeria, and like many of our brightest minds, I sought further opportunities abroad — practicing and excelling in the United States. But no matter how far I went, the call of home never faded. That is why I returned. That is why I serve. And that is why I deeply believe in the vision of BRIDGE.
The Diaspora BRIDGE program — Bridging Research, Innovation, Development & Global Engagement — is designed to create structured, meaningful engagement between our institutions and Nigerians in the diaspora. For decades, we have watched the migration of talent — doctors, engineers, scientists, researchers, and teachers — many of whom now lead and contribute to some of the most advanced institutions in the world. With BRIDGE, we are no longer asking if they can come back, but how we can enable their knowledge and contributions to enrich our institutions even from afar.
Through BRIDGE, we are launching a digital platform that allows for collaborative teaching, mentorship, joint research, capacity-building, and policy innovation — all driven by diaspora and home based professionals alike. It will offer flexible channels for virtual and physical engagement, and empower universities, polytechnics, colleges of education, and teaching hospitals to define their specific needs and match them with global Nigerian expertise. In doing so, we will not only close gaps in education and research, but raise Nigeria’s academic standing in the world.
This is not merely a Ministry of Education project. It is a national project — one that aligns with Mr. President’s Renewed Hope Agenda and his vision to harness our full human capital potential. BRIDGE has already been integrated with the TETFund’s TERAS platform, to ensure transparency, effective funding disbursement, and ease of access for institutions and collaborators alike.
To our diaspora professionals — this is your invitation to reconnect. Not as outsiders looking in, but as co-builders of a better Nigerian education system. To our institutions — BRIDGE will help you access talent, partnerships, and innovation from beyond our borders. And to our students — BRIDGE is a promise that your education will prepare you to compete and lead in the global knowledge economy.
Let me close by emphasizing: I am one of you — a product of this country, a contributor to the world, and now a servant to the nation. BRIDGE is not just a policy. It is a legacy we are building — one that will outlast us, empower future generations, and restore pride in Nigeria’s academic excellence.
Thank you all for being here to witness this historic beginning. May God bless you, and may God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Thank you.
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