The University of Ado-Ekiti Council established the Centre for Research and Development in 1991. The Council mandated that the Centre should provide Research and Technology support for the development of the State, and thereby contribute actively to the improvement of standards of living of the people of the State. The Council expects that the intellectual and technology resources of University of Ado-Ekiti will be used to break the cycle of historical underdevelopment of the State.

The Founders of the University envisaged that it will be a vanguard of economic, social and industrial revolution in the State. Towards this goal the Centre for Research and Development was established as a semi-autonomous Unit of the University and, as a Research and Development arm of the University to harness the intellectual and material resources of the State towards the overall social, economic and industrial advancement of Ekiti State. The Centre is set up to undertake any research or study that the State Government, industrial and other agencies may want to carry out.

Business and Information Technology Department became operative in 1993, and has since started computer training programme for all categories of people, ranging from school certificates holders to Bank Managers, Professors and other professionals.

General Information on the Framework and Services of the Department:
The general objectives of the Centre are to:
i.    Actualise the relevance of the University of Ado-Ekiti to the economic and technological development of Ekiti State.
ii.    Generate funds and attract human and other resources to promote Research and Development in Nigeria in general and Ekiti State in particular.
iii.    Identify and bridge gaps between the state of knowledge and practice in various fields of economic activities in the State.
iv.    Conduct research into various aspects of industrial development in Ekiti State, and make such information available to entrepreneurs in the State, through industrial extension services.
v.    Undertake all such activities from time to time that may be necessary and expedient for the attainment of the foregoing objectives.

General Information on the Organs and Activities of the Department
The Centre consists of the following three departments:
i.    Administration with the following functions:
a.    Establishment of the Centre, including registration, setting up the conditions of service, drafting financial regulations, publicity through printing of the Centre’s brochures, newspaper and the electronic media.
b.    Appointment of staff
c.    Fund raising
d.    Establishing linkage with other Research Centres in Nigeria and all over the world.
e.    Preparation of Research and Consultancy proposals and soliciting for funding of these from appropriate agencies.
ii.    Consultancy and Product Development which performs the following functions:
a.    Set up a book writing unit for schools: primary, secondary and tertiary levels.
b.    Organize workshops and using information from such workshops to set the priorities of the Centre.
c.    Execute consultancies through invitation and soliciting.
d.    Fabricate simple tools such as spare parts and produce raw materials and chemicals.
iii.    Business and Information Technology  which performs the function that:
a.    Provide at a cost most of the secretarial services of the Centre.
b.    Serve as the Publications Centre of the University.
c.    Acquire information on agriculture, industrial, technological, social and economic parameters, that will be useful to the Centre and the public.
d.    Set up facility for electronic storage processing and retrieval of information.
e.    Carry out secretarial services for the University Administration, Staff, Students and the public on commercial basis.
f.    Assist interested parties in data analysis, project preparation etc; e.g. the prevention of blackpod diseases of cocoa in 1993, which was very helpful to our local farmers, both within and outside the State.