 Ladies and gentlemen, I am honored to have been asked to speak and here I am presenting the speech of His Excellency the President, President Mohamadu Buhari. I am honored to have been asked to be the grand host of the Academy's public forum today with this specific theme, quote, the strategic role of engineering in containing the COVID-19 pandemic, end of quote. The theme headlines the important developmental conversations and postmortems that we must have in the important in the aftermath of the pandemic. The pandemic is probably the single most consequential global occurrence in a century. Its most enduring feature may be how much it tested the resilience and innovativeness of all aspects of our existence, and in particular medicine, science and technology. This was a ravaging disease that not only killed hundreds of thousands, but also practically shut down the global economy. International travel, including cargo movement, were suspended and this means that supply chains were disrupted for goods and services. In-person meetings, no matter how crucial the subject, had to be suspended. Non-COVID even emergency medical treatment was canceled or suspended. The disease was spreading exponentially in many countries of the world. For developing economies such as ours, we were faced with monumental challenges of providing enough labs for testing, ICUs, PPEs, and at some point ventilators who are thought to be important. Then of course we had to buy or develop our own testing and possibly even make our own vaccines. So it was to science, technology and engineering that the world turned for immediate solutions and answers. And I'm sure that as engineers you will agree with me that one of the most poignant lessons of the response to the pandemic is the critical interdependence of science and engineering. On the 27th of February 2020, Nigeria confirmed its first case of COVID-19 at the Infectious Diseases Hospital in Yaba Lagos. The case was diagnosed by the Center for Human and Zoonotic virology, College of Medicine University of Lagos, and the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Luth, part of the laboratory network of the NCDC. On the 1st of March 2020, a clinical specimen, specifically a sputum specimen, was sent to the Africa Center of Excellence for the Genomics of Infectious Diseases, Redeemer's University in Nigeria, and the Center for Human virology and Genomics, Nigerian Institute of Medical Research for Sequencing and Molecular Characterization. Very rapidly, the Africa Center of Excellence for the Genomics of Infectious Diseases, in collaboration with the Nigerian Disease Control, the Nigerian Center for Disease Control as the NCDC, the Center for Human virology and Genomics, the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research, the Center for Human and Zoonotic virology, College of Medicine University of Lagos, and the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, the Lagos State Ministry of Health, Biosafety Level 3, Baobang Facility, and partners reported the first genome sequence of SARS-CoV-2 from Africa, from the first confirmed case of COVID-19 in Nigeria. A spectacular science and engineering achievement, the skills and processes of optical, electrical, mechanical, computer, and chemical engineers were required to make this happen. There's no question that going forward, this is the way it must be, the way of collaboration. The Africa Center has also developed an efficacious rapid test for COVID and has been working on a vaccine in collaboration with Diosynvax, Cambridge, UK, using the Diosynvax Genomic-Based Technology to identify the appropriate vaccine type for Nigeria. There are also efforts going on on therapeutics of various kinds. The development of vaccines, tests, and therapeutics these days are aided by automation, machine learning, and artificial intelligence. So this is a strong point of synergy between science and engineering. The large-scale production of therapeutics, vaccines, test kits, and even laboratories are uniquely engineering challenges. All the supply chain logistic issues in the storage, especially the ultra-refrigeration requirements and distribution of vaccines, are clearly engineering issues and we must commend the collaboration that has so far resulted in one of the most efficient distribution and delivery of vaccines anywhere in the world. Our state-of-the-art NCDC National Public Health Reference Laboratory is an engineering feat run by all Nigerian scientists and technologists. I think the pandemic has truly opened up the immense talents and creativity of Nigerian scientists and engineers and if the current momentum is supported the next few years could be incredibly rewarding. First are the opportunities and adaptations that are now evident and these are some of the new opportunities that there are. The adaptations that are now evident in MRNA technology. MRNA is the key ingredient in the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines as we all know. The success of these MRNA vaccines against COVID-19 predicts a bright future for new vaccine therapies to meet new emerging threats. Our genomic laboratories especially the Africa Center for Excellence has already acquired an international reputation and they can in collaboration with scientists and technologists locally and everywhere develop therapies for other diseases or disorders. The second is the use of digital twin technology to plan, predict for the control of epidemics and also the manufacturing of millions of generic drugs. Already the Central Bank of Nigeria is supporting the pharmaceutical production of generic drugs in Nigeria and we expect that the next few years we should see Nigeria becoming a center for the production of generic drugs. And third the lockdowns have shown the huge potential for the creation of effective technologies for telework activities and of course we're all familiar right now we're on Zoom and this of course is one of the fallouts of the pandemic and the tremendous potentials are there now for developing effective applications and technologies for telework activities such as meetings that we're holding now. Of course the opportunities for telemedicine are immense as well and FinTech which during the pandemic came into its own with several FinTech companies being able to make payments, being able to make money payments when in-person banking became impossible. I must say this and this is not because I am the grand patron of the academy that we are proud of the Nigerian Academy of Engineers. Your membership is made up of accomplished Nigerian engineers across all disciplines, industry sectors and industry sectors of engineering in Nigeria and in the diaspora. This provides the academy with the depth and diversity of experience and competence to provide advice on virtually all areas of engineering in the country. This is an asset that the country must nurture and develop. The next few years belong to engineering the pandemic has showed us the immense potentials for innovation and collaboration. Be sure that you have as partners the federal government of Nigeria This is why I urge you as this very distinguished academy to ensure that you embrace this exciting new era and you have partners in the federal government of Nigeria as we enter into this very exciting new vistas for engineering in Nigeria. Thank you very much. God bless you.