COVID-19, Lassa Fever Cure: Nigerian Scientists Fail To Win FG’s N36m prize

Nigerian Scientists Fall Short in Claiming N36 Million Reward for COVID-19 and Lassa Fever Cures

In a development that underscores the challenges faced by the scientific community in Nigeria, PulseNets investigations have revealed that Nigerian scientists and researchers have been unable to secure the N36 million reward offered by the Federal Government for discovering cures for both COVID-19 and Lassa Fever. This cash prize, initially announced on February 13, 2020, by then Minister of Science and Technology, Dr Ogbonnaya Onu, was intended to serve as a powerful motivator for scientists across the country.

Despite the challenge issued by Dr Onu and the high stakes of the cash prize, as of Tuesday, November 21, 2023, no scientist has successfully claimed the reward. This realization comes more than three years after the introduction of the cash incentive, casting a spotlight on the complexities and hurdles faced by scientists in the pursuit of groundbreaking discoveries.

In the early stages of the prize announcement, former INEC Chairman Prof. Maurice Iwu emerged as a notable participant by presenting a potential cure for COVID-19. His research group, the Bioresources Institute of Nigeria (BION), showcased a promising development. However, the trajectory of events took an unexpected turn as the N36 million reward remained unclaimed. Iwu, in response, appealed for support from the Federal Government and fellow Nigerians to facilitate the transformation of the potential cure into a viable drug.

Despite the signing of a Non-Clinical Evaluation Agreement between Iwu’s research group and a prestigious US government agency, the coveted N36 million cash prize has yet to find its rightful recipient. The last substantive update on the matter came in May 2020 when a committee was established to scrutinize claims made by various individuals and institutions asserting they had discovered a cure for COVID-19.

Further investigations by PulseNets uncovered a surprising and somewhat disheartening revelation: the N36 million cash prize appears to have faded into the background, with many relevant government officials, including the current Director of Press and Public Relations in the Federal Ministry of Innovation, Science and Technology, Mr Aurora Obed, expressing a lack of awareness regarding the prize and its status.

Prof Mosto Onuoha, who served as the President of the Nigerian Academy of Science at the time the prize was announced, shared insights on the matter. He revealed that the issue remains inconclusive, lacking clarity on how the prize was structured and implemented. Onuoha suggested that a lack of a proper arrangement, including a defined timeline and submission guidelines, might have played a role in the unclaimed reward.

The lack of a clear resolution to the N36 million cash prize raises pertinent questions about the effectiveness and organizational aspects of such incentives aimed at encouraging scientific advancements within the Nigerian scientific community. As the scientific landscape continues to evolve globally, the incident prompts a critical reflection on the support systems, frameworks, and motivations required to propel scientific innovation and breakthroughs in Nigeria.

Asked if any scientist won the prize, he said, “Not to my knowledge. I don’t think so. I don’t even know how many submissions were even made.

“I don’t think that matter was concluded, especially since the then minister (Ogbonnaya Onu) left office more than a year ago.”

Further asked if the Academy was concerned that no Nigerian scientist was able to win the prize, Onuoha suggested that the cash prize was not clearly conceptualised.

“It is of concern but then we don’t know how the minister went about it. I heard the announcement, in fact the minister then said it at several places.

“But I don’t know whether there was a proper arrangement. You have to have a timeline, a way of submission, if possible an advert. I don’t remember seeing any of them. What I remember was hearing that announcement.”

The Professor Emeritus of Geology added: “The Academy of Science has a prize, just like the NLNG Science Prize. The NLNG Science Prize has a timeline, specifications and all necessary details.

“Maybe, for the N36 million prize, the minister expected that if you have something, send it to the Ministry.

“If you check, you will find out that either nobody submitted, or people submitted but there was no uniform or directed procedure or focal point.

“I think your finding is right because if there is anybody who claimed it (the N36 million prize) we would have known.

“Why it is so I don’t know, it could be any of these things, it could be nobody considered that he has done enough work to merit the prize.”

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Continuing, he said, “N36 million is not a very large amount, afterall the NLNG Science Prize is even one hundred thousand US dollars – they (NLNG) may have increased it now. A hundred thousand dollars is a large amount when compared to N36 million.

“The Academy gives money too but we also give the gold medal because we recognize money is important but it is not everything.”