The Federal Government has awarded ₦100 million to Adaeze Ruth Akpagbula, a Nigerian agricultural engineer and co-founder of Farm Speak, after her innovation, the PenKeep Smart Poultry Climate Control System, emerged as the overall winner of the 2026 InnovateNaija competition.
The award was presented at the InnovateNaija Final Pitch Event and Awards Ceremony held in Abuja. The initiative, organised by the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) in partnership with AfriLabs, aims to identify, support and promote homegrown technologies capable of addressing Nigeria’s developmental challenges.
Akpagbula’s innovation is designed to help farmers manage environmental conditions in poultry farming, aquaculture, greenhouse production and smart irrigation. By providing greater control over production environments, the technology could help farmers reduce climate-related losses and improve agricultural productivity.
The agricultural engineer, who co-founded Farm Speak with her husband, Kita Okoma, said the ₦100 million prize would enable the company to expand its production capacity and make the technology available to more farmers. She identified inadequate funding, infrastructure challenges and unreliable electricity supply as major obstacles facing hardware innovators in Nigeria.
GOVERNMENT RENEWS COMMITMENT TO HOMEGROWN TECHNOLOGY
Representing President Bola Ahmed Tinubu at the ceremony, the Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, Dr Kingsley Tochukwu Udeh, said the innovations showcased at the competition demonstrated the considerable talent available among young Nigerians.
He explained that the Federal Government was working to move Nigerian innovations beyond ideas and prototypes into the marketplace by connecting inventors and researchers with investors, industries and other stakeholders capable of supporting commercialisation.
According to the minister, commercialising locally developed technologies would help innovators generate revenue, create employment opportunities, improve livelihoods and contribute to national economic growth.
Udeh also disclosed that President Tinubu had forwarded a bill to the National Assembly seeking the establishment of a National Research and Innovation Development Fund. The proposed fund is intended to provide dedicated financial support for research, inventions and innovations with commercial potential.
The minister further urged Nigerians to support locally developed products based on their quality and ability to meet required standards, rather than simply because they were made in the country.
INNOVATION PROGRAMME REACHES THOUSANDS OF YOUNG NIGERIANS
According to AfriLabs Director of Programmes, Nanko Madu, the partnership with NASENI was designed to ensure that talented innovators could receive recognition and support regardless of their location.
She said InnovateNaija and the FutureMakers programme had reached more than 3,500 young Nigerians across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory. Their projects covered agriculture, manufacturing, renewable energy, healthcare, education and climate technology.
InnovateNaija targets young people aged 15 to 40, providing opportunities for mentorship, technical assistance, funding, market access and increased visibility. FutureMakers, meanwhile, focuses on younger innovators between the ages of five and 16.
Madu noted that Nigeria’s dependence on imported technologies made it important to support solutions developed around the country’s realities, including its climate, infrastructure, electricity supply, languages and purchasing power.
The programmes identified 36 state champions, each of whom initially received ₦2.5 million. The three leading national innovations received prizes of ₦100 million, ₦30 million and ₦20 million, respectively.
The governors of Abia, Anambra, Enugu, Plateau and Kaduna states also matched the ₦2.5 million grants awarded to their respective state champions, bringing the financial support for each beneficiary in those states to ₦5 million.
NASENI SEEKS TO BRIDGE THE GAP BETWEEN RESEARCH AND THE MARKET
NASENI Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Khalil Suleiman Halilu, said the agency was repositioning its research and development activities around three priorities: Creation, Collaboration and Commercialisation.
The approach is intended to strengthen the connection between research, product development, industry and the marketplace, giving promising Nigerian technologies a better chance of becoming viable businesses.
The agency also presented awards and development grants through its inter-agency and intra-agency innovation competitions. Three inter-agency winners received development grants totalling ₦140 million, while three intra-agency winners received ₦22.5 million in cash prizes.
The Head of the NASENI Innovation Hub, Busola Perez Folayan, said the agency was expanding its programmes beyond established technology centres to identify promising innovators at the grassroots.
She disclosed that InnovateNaija received more than 1,000 applications before public voting produced 36 state winners and the final 15 national contestants. NASENI, she added, would continue supporting successful innovators through incubation, business development, technical assistance and investor matching.
STATES INCREASE SUPPORT FOR INNOVATION
Anambra State’s Special Adviser to the Governor on Innovation and Business Incubation, Chinwe Okoli, said the state government had approved matching grants for its state champion following discussions with NASENI.
She explained that the intervention aligned with Governor Chukwuma Soludo’s technology-driven development agenda. According to her, 111 start-ups had received approximately ₦364 million through various state programmes, while 264,000 people had undergone digital skills training.
She also disclosed that the state was developing a 13.7-hectare Solution Innovation District to provide facilities and support for start-ups, innovators and technology entrepreneurs.
Akpagbula’s achievement highlights the potential of Nigerian innovators to develop practical solutions to local challenges. The success of the PenKeep system will now depend on the company’s ability to expand production, reach farmers and translate its technology into measurable improvements in agricultural productivity.
The ₦100 million award also reinforces the importance of sustained investment, reliable infrastructure and partnerships that can help promising Nigerian innovations progress from development to commercial success.
