READING, RESEARCH & INNOVATION: Catalysts for National Development

This is a keynote address presented to participants at the library week organised by the National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies (NILDS), Abuja, Nigeria, on Wednesday, 28th October, 2026. The focus was to X-ray how the intersection of reading, research and innovation contributes to national development. The presentation emphasised that the responsibility for acheiving the three rests on those who lead the nation's intellectual, academic, legislative and research institutions with a view to ensuring that reading becomes a national habit, research becomes an instrument of national problem-solving, and innovation becomes a defining feature of Nigeria’s development. The presentation noted that no nation can make progress without reading, research and innovation. It went further to position thus: “Show me a person who does not read, and I will show you the person who does not think critically; show me a person who does not think critically, and I will show you a person who cannot perceive problems in his environment; show me a person who cannot perceive problems, and I will show you a person who cannot undertake research; and show me a system that cannot undertake research, and I will show you a system without innovation." The conclusion is that Young Nigerians are watching the choices our institutions make. If we read visibly, they may read more seriously ;If we investigate honestly, they may learn to value evidence. If we collaborate across sectors, they may learn that difficult problems require collective intelligence; If we support promising ideas, they may become innovators rather than spectators. Therefore, our greatest contribution to national development may not only be the books we read, the research we publish or the innovations we produce, but also the intellectual culture we leave behind for the generation that follows us.