Only 15 per cent of Nigerians now trust science a lot, down from 26 per cent in 2018. The country's universities still lean mainly on state funding and student fees instead of earnings from research. The two problems feed into each other: research people can believe in earns both public goodwill and commercial worth. Any route by which trust in science Nigeria can rebuild rests on institutions that produce it.
This leaves Nigerians facing a policy tussle, and it is the question I most want answered in this edition. Why do the country's universities stay so reliant on state allocations and tuition fees? Their research strengths might also draw in corporate money, yield intellectual property and help launch new ventures.
Getting there takes more than simply urging firms to bankroll campuses. Universities must be able to deliver research that can be trusted, safeguard the intellectual property it creates, and bargain skilfully over commercial partnerships.
What research spending reveals about trust in science Nigeria
How much a nation puts into research and development shows how far into the future it is prepared to look. Scientific progress is never a matter of luck. It depends on steady funding, research institutions that actually work, trained personnel, technical facilities, and administrations prepared to bankroll knowledge long before any financial return shows up.
The United States is believed to have spent $993 billion on R&D in 2024, roughly 3.4 per cent of its GDP. Nigeria, on the other hand, has reported figures to international bodies that are badly out of date. The UNESCO series carried by the World Bank shows spending of just 0.22 per cent of GDP in 2007, and nothing later to compare it with.
That is more than a statistical gap. It raises doubt over how seriously the country monitors, and rates as a priority, the scientific capacity that development requires. Without that capacity, trust in science Nigeria has little to stand on.
Lessons for Nigerian universities from Michigan's model
In March I went to the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, where my child is studying pre-med. The institution is often counted among America's Public Ivies because of how it ranks academically among top public universities. One of its staff is a Nigerian, Professor Omolade Adunbi, who heads its African Studies Center. He and I have known each other for almost twenty years, and he came along with her to greet me on campus.
During our discussion, I wanted to know how universities in the United States devise creative ways to pay for their academic work. I also wanted to know which of those lessons Nigeria and other African countries might borrow. His reply set out what I would describe as the Michigan model.
He stressed that university research can bring in revenue. Through its office for innovation partnerships, the University of Michigan runs a broad system for commercialising research, linking academics with companies, philanthropic trusts, backers and business founders.
The work that Michigan's researchers generate creates chances for firms to sponsor studies, team up with academics, obtain licences for intellectual property and carry findings to market. To show how education, research and business are interlinked at universities, Professor Adunbi pointed to Larry Page, who co-founded Google with Sergey Brin.
Page was a Michigan graduate who went on to Stanford, where he and Sergey Brin built PageRank, the technology on which Google was founded. The work behind Google was done at Stanford, yet the case shows the broader worth of higher education and invention.
Four ways universities can earn from research
We moved smoothly from the question of how Nigerian universities are funded and managed to the politics surrounding the institutions that oversee them. Professor Adunbi identified four ways in which universities can turn research into value:
- corporate-sponsored research, where firms pay for work that tackles their technological or commercial problems;
- the licensing of intellectual property, which lets universities safeguard their commercially promising discoveries and license them out;
- spinouts, through which researchers can build companies around innovations that come out of the campus; and
- strategic research partnerships, in which companies fund longer-running research programmes that matter to their sectors.
Nigeria keeps granting licences to additional universities, so what these institutions are worth has to go beyond the certificates they award. Their worth should equally be judged by how well they produce skilled people, innovations and breakthroughs that generate economic value.
Michigan reported $2.16 billion in spending on research for fiscal year 2025, drew $170.6 million in research awards sponsored by corporations, and helped bring 31 startups into being. What it has achieved shows the possibilities that open up when academic research, public funding and private-sector involvement strengthen each other.
Trust in science Nigeria: where the numbers stand
Nigeria's own figures follow this troubling pattern. Back in 2018, 26 per cent of Nigerians said they had a great deal of confidence in scientists, but by 2020 only 13 per cent said the same. The share edged up to 15 per cent in 2025.
That rise is encouraging, yet it leaves the country 11 percentage points beneath where it stood before the pandemic. In all, 57 per cent of Nigerians said they had at least some confidence in science.
This points to a basic policy problem, and it is the question I most want answered in this edition. Why do Nigerian universities lean so heavily on state funding and student fees? Their research strengths might also draw corporate investment, yield intellectual property and help launch new businesses.
Getting there takes more than urging companies to bankroll universities. It demands institutions that can deliver research people can rely on, safeguard intellectual property, and bargain over commercial partnerships.
Nigerians' views on science, as revealed by Wellcome's study
Wellcome, a global charity based in London, published a report on 10 October drawing on conversations with over 140,000 respondents in 140 countries. It showed that, following the COVID-19 outbreak, faith in science has slipped around the world and is now lower than it was in 2018.
The pattern is visible in Nigeria too, and it is cause for concern. Back in 2018, about 26 per cent of Nigerians said science had their trust to a great extent. Two years later, in 2020, only 13 per cent said so. A small rebound brought it to 15 per cent in 2025.
The uptick is welcome, but Nigeria is still 11 percentage points away from where it stood before COVID-19 struck. All told, 57 per cent of Nigerians said they had some confidence in science, at a minimum.
Vaccines, hesitation and the need for clear answers
Vaccination was another area the survey covered. Respondents in Nigeria were asked how they would react if a nurse or physician advised an injection. 35 per cent would accept it immediately, while a slightly larger group, 36 per cent, would first want time to think it over. A further 24 per cent said they never receive any vaccines.
Pausing to think before accepting a vaccine does not mean a person is against immunisation. This kind of caution ought not to be written off as mere ignorance. What matters more is whether people are given clear and believable answers that let them make an informed choice.
The shadow of the pandemic is still very much with us. Scientific guidance can shift as fresh evidence arrives, which is simply how science ordinarily works and not a flaw. Yet when officials handle uncertainty badly, later revisions to advice may be read as proof that those in charge were inept or untruthful.
Even so, Nigeria should avoid the easy route of blaming COVID-19 alone for its numbers. For a great many Nigerians, the closest contact with science comes not through a laboratory or a research institution, but through a hospital, clinic or pharmacy, or a talk with a health worker.
In fairness, the Federal Government has unveiled a scheme that might tackle some of these worries. After the Federal Executive Council gave its approval, the government said in May that it plans to set up the National Research and Innovation Development Fund (NRIDF), aiming for annual funding of up to $500 million, roughly ₦673 billion at today's official rate. The money is meant to back competitive research grants, build up innovation infrastructure and turn research findings into products that can be sold.
Healthcare confidence and money worries shape trust in science Nigeria
The Wellcome report points to a striking link between people's confidence in hospitals and clinics and their trust in scientific research. Worldwide, 43 per cent of respondents with high confidence in their local health facilities also expressed great faith in scientific work. Across the entire survey, the proportion was 26 per cent.
Money worries add a further layer. Worldwide in 2025, 39 per cent of respondents who described themselves as financially comfortable said they had a great deal of confidence in science. Only 20 per cent of those struggling to make ends meet said the same.
Families weighed down by the price of groceries, housing, tuition and healthcare may lack the capacity to hunt for dependable facts or follow expert guidance. When institutions seem out of touch with such hardship, what they say may count for less.
Has the government delivered on its research funding promise?
In fairness to the authorities, Abuja has unveiled a scheme that might tackle several of these shortcomings. After the Federal Executive Council approved it, the Federal Government said in May that it planned to set up the National Research and Innovation Development Fund (NRIDF). It is aiming for yearly funding of as much as $500 million, roughly ₦673 billion at today's official rate. The money is meant to back competitive research grants, build up innovation infrastructure, and turn research findings into products that can be sold.
A government promise, though, does not amount to cash paid out. The $500 million sum was presented merely as an annual target. Kingsley Udeh, the Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, said on 8 October that the exact total could not yet be settled. He explained that the funding model under review would draw from multiple sources, with each one calculated as a percentage annually. He further said that the bill establishing the fund had been sent on to the National Assembly.
Put simply, the initiative has won approval from the executive, but its legal and financial footing is still incomplete. Announcing a fund is not appropriating money for it, and an appropriation does not always lead to money being paid out.
For this reason, the government has to show that the fund rests on a revenue framework that is sustainable, independently run, transparently managed, and open to credible researchers.
Since the Wellcome report appeared on 10 October, I have found no particular public response to it from Nigeria's authorities. Even so, for discoveries to become workable solutions with commercial potential, the country needs research that answers local priorities, plus tighter ties between universities and industry. Only then can trust in science Nigeria genuinely be rebuilt.
Policy in the public sector is one of his areas of advice, alongside strategic communications. He founded Hintells, an intelligence platform powered by AI, and leads it; among those who hire him are firms and embassies based in Washington, DC. His assignments reach many countries, and he counsels markets across the globe on governance and on reforms to the economy and to policy.
Why trust in science Nigeria depends on universities
The figures for Nigeria follow a troubling pattern. In 2018, 26 per cent of Nigerians said they had a great deal of confidence in scientists. By 2020, only 13 per cent said the same. The share edged up to 15 per cent in 2025.
Although the increase is a welcome one, confidence in science in Nigeria still sits 11 percentage points lower than it did prior to the pandemic. In total, 57 per cent of Nigerians said they had at least a measure of confidence in science.
The numbers point to a policy problem. Nigerian universities lean heavily on state funding and student fees, even though their research could draw corporate investment, produce intellectual property and help launch new businesses.
Getting there takes more than urging companies to pay for research. Universities need to deliver work people can rely on, protect what they create and bargain well over commercial partnerships. Without that, trust in science Nigeria will stay low, and with it the case for funding research.
This is a basic policy puzzle. Why do Nigerian universities rely so heavily on state funding and student fees, when their research could also draw corporate investment, produce intellectual property and launch new businesses?
Getting there takes more than urging companies to fund campuses. Universities need to deliver research people can rely on, protect the intellectual property it creates, and negotiate well over commercial partnerships. Without that, trust in science Nigeria has little to build on.
Getting there takes more than simply urging firms to bankroll campuses. Universities must be able to deliver research that can be trusted, safeguard the intellectual property it creates, and bargain skilfully over commercial partnerships.
This story was first reported by Premium Times Nigeria.
