By Stella Azi
The Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC) has successfully concluded its three-day Strategic Management Retreat aimed at strengthening its mandate delivery and enhancing its contribution to Nigeria’s industrial development.
The 3-day retreat with the theme Future-Proofing RMRDC: Strategic Foresight and Import Substitution Leadership; held from Wednesday 17th to Friday 19th December, 2025 at the Grand Pela Hotel and Suites, Durumi, Abuja, brought together the Council’s top management officials and key facilitators for high-level strategic engagement.
Declaring the retreat open, the Director-General/Chief Executive Officer of RMRDC, Prof. Nnanyelugo Ike-Muonso, described the engagement as an opportunity for Management of the Council to reflect on the Council’s role within Nigeria’s industrial ecosystem and to reposition it for greater national impact. He emphasized the importance of strategic foresight, institutional alignment, and focused leadership in achieving sustainable industrial growth.
Facilitated by the Rector Kaduna Business School, Dr, Dahiru Sani, the retreat featured presentations, interactive discussions, and scenario-based planning sessions. Participants reviewed global best practices and examined pathways for strengthening Nigeria’s raw materials value chain in support of import substitution and industrial competitiveness.

At the end of the retreat, participants reaffirmed RMRDC’s statutory mandate to promote the development, utilization, and value addition of Nigeria’s raw materials for industrial growth.
The retreat further emphasized:
• The strategic importance of import substitution as a driver of industrial resilience and economic sustainability.
• The need to strengthen institutional systems, collaboration, and execution capacity to enhance impact.
• The role of research–industry linkages in improving local raw material utilization.
• The value of policy coherence and global benchmarking in positioning Nigeria for competitiveness in regional and global markets.
Management resolved to pursue continuous improvement of internal processes, deepen partnerships with relevant stakeholders, and align programmes with national industrial development priorities. The retreat also stressed the importance of innovation, performance monitoring, and long-term strategic planning in advancing the Council’s objectives.
The Management Retreat concluded with a renewed commitment by RMRDC’s leadership to deliver measurable outcomes, learn from global best practices, strengthen institutional relevance, deepen collaboration and support Nigeria’s drive toward economic diversification and industrialization through effective raw materials development.







