Nigeria-EU Innovation Days: a new initiative to showcase and enhance the bilateral cooperation on Science, Technology and Innovation, under the AU-EU Innovation Agenda

The first edition of the “Nigeria-EU Innovation Days” took place on 9-10 July in Lagos, Nigeria. Organised jointly by the European Union (EU) and the Federal Government of Nigeria, under the theme of “Where ideas meet actions”, this two days-event aimed to showcase the vibrancy of the Nigeria-EU and Africa-EU Cooperation on Research and Innovation (R&I), highlighting meaningful success stories in this partnership. The programme of the event was designed to bring together representatives of the Nigerian, African at large, and European R&I ecosystems in a structured, yet informal and very interactive format. 

The Nigeria-EU Innovation Days gathered more than 500 participants on-site and approximately 200 online (through live streaming on the YouTube Channel of the EU Delegation to Nigeria, with recordings being available online, for Day 1 and Day 2, respectively).  Attendees included entrepreneurs, innovators, researchers, academics, postgraduate students, government officials, representatives of business support organisations (hubs and incubators), Non-Governmental Organisations and investors. 

The event comprised plenary and parallel sessions on different topics such as: eHealth, Agritech, Industry 4.0, funding, training and collaboration opportunities (from both the EU and Nigeria), and creative industries [with a focus on areas particularly prominent in Nigeria, such as filming (“Nollywood”) and music industry (afrobeat), fashion design and literature]. 

Day 1 of the event was co-opened by Nigeria’s Honourable Minister of Youth Development, Her Excellency Dr Jamila Bio Ibrahim, and the Head of the EU Delegation to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Her Excellency Ambassador Samuela Isopi. The introductory plenary of the event included also a presentation on the AU-EU Innovation Agenda and Nigeria’s contribution to it so far, provided by Dr Vincenzo Lorusso, Policy Officer at the European Commission, DG R&I. This Agenda represents the 10 year- policy framework under which the Nigeria-EU Innovation Days were conceived, aiming to accelerate the translation of R&I into positive socio-economic impact, in both Africa and Europe.
On Day 2, the event was opened by Lagos State’s Honorable Commissioner for Innovation Science and Technology, His Excellency Mr Tunbosun Alake.

Throughout the two days, an exhibition space allowed 15 entrepreneurs and start-ups to showcase their innovative solutions and projects  to peers and potential investors (see pictures below), building on the experience of two previous initiatives implemented as part of the AU-EU Innovation Agenda (the “AU-EU Innovation Stakeholder Event”, of November 2022 in Nairobi and online, and the “AU-EU Innovation Festival”, of June 2023 in Cape Town – both hosting the so-called “AU-EU Innovation Fair – Meet the innovators”).

The event also included an innovative poetry workshop entitled “Slam Poetry for Innovators”, as part of which participants could draft and submit their poetry pieces on topics such as innovation and Nigeria-EU, Africa-EU cooperation. Compositions by six participants were selected for a public performance on the main stage during the closing ceremony (accessible in the recording of Day 2 of the event). 

Overall, the Nigeria-EU Innovation Days represented an important milestone in the advancement of this bilateral cooperation on R&I, and also on the contribution of the community of Nigerian R&I stakeholders and organisations to the implementation of the AU-EU Innovation Agenda. 

Find out more about the ongoing implementation of this Agenda on the AU-EU Innovation Interface.