Africa needs to apply STI in its water and sanitation sector

By Vivienne Irikefe(Nigeria) At the first Forum for Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) in Nairobi Kenya, a session on water and sanitation agreed that trained professionals are needed in this sector and government and donor partnership was emphasized for enhanced funds to reform existing institutions, train and provide efficient water supply, design septic tanks, latrines and proper disposal of waste that can be accessed by all Africans. The idea was to look at issues of STI that can be applied in the water resources sector including sanitation. Participants deliberated on challenges and opportunities that will investigate mechanisms that can lead to solutions and suggest the way forward at the plenary in a consultative manner. The provocateur, Paul Ginies, from the International Institute for water and Environmental Engineering Burkina Faso, said that Africa lacks qualified engineers in essential areas in water management, irrigation and sanitation and stressed that awareness is fundamental for people to be able to differentiate between clean water and safe drinking water. A science programme specialist with UNESCO, Alexandros Makarigakis, who was one of the rapporteurs, said the Africa water vision for 2025 for equitable and sustainable use of water for socio-economic development has to be reviewed.

Scientists at one of the sessions at the First Forum on Science, Technology and Innovation in Nairobi, Kenya 1-3 April 2012, (Photo By Arsenio Manhice) He argued that the vision was a very innovative document at the time it was conceptualized but since then new challenges have surfaced like climate change because it will change not only the current surface water resources quantities but also it will put additional pressure on ground water systems. Dr Makarigakis explained that due to climate change the rainfall patterns would alter having extreme events taking place more often like floods and droughts. This affects agriculture and food production, which is basically the livelihood of the ordinary man in Africa who relies on rain fed agriculture. One of the participants Prof. Abdalla Abdelsalam Ahmed from Islamic University, Sudan said we need water resources assessment and evaluation in Africa and focus on providing people with the knowledge for saving water as a precious gift. As a part of innovation, a chemist Dr. Florence Tobo Lobe from Cameroon suggested that in places with scarcity of water, humidity in the air could be captured as water, purified for drinking and other uses. About 4.2 billion people suffer from water and sanitation worldwide according to the World Health Organization and Africa has the highest percentage. The session also highlighted the importance of community involvement and how African youths can be carried along to take advantage of the immense job opportunities in the fields of water and sanitation.

Africa needs to invest in science, technology and innovation

Margaret J. Kamar Minister of Higher Education, Science and Technology Kenya (Photo by Arsenio Manhice) By VIOLET MENGO (Zambia) The first African Forum on Science, Technology and Innovation (STI)taking place in Nairobi, Kenya has highlighted the need to invest in this key sector to foster sustainable growth and development and provide job opportunities for youth and women. And African countries have been called upon to embrace and utilise relevant science, technology and creatively innovate to ensure viable development. Speaking at the official opening of the conference, Kenyan Minister of Higher Education, Science and Technology Margaret Kamar said African countries will only be able to effectively confront some of the pressing challenges of development when STI is effectively utilised. “The problems of youth unemployment, inadequacies in human capital development and inclusive growth will be achieved when we (Africans) take seriously STIs,” Ms Kamar said. The Forum is an African initiative and looks at achievements made in this domain across the continent, highlighting best practices and policies. It also seeks to strengthen North-South and South-South cooperation, partnerships between the private and public sectors and cooperation between institutions of higher education. The conference is sponsored by UNESCO with the African Union Commission (AU), the African Development Bank (AfDB), the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), the Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA) and the Kenyan Ministry of Higher Education Science and Technology. Ms Karmar said the conference is going to provide an excellent opportunity to share experiences especially best practices from all over the world, on science, technology and innovation policies, strategies and mechanisms. The STI is an African initiative aimed at raising importance of science and technologies among policy makers, private sector, schools and society in general. The Kenyan minister said promotion of innovation and entrepreneurship; especially those which have greatest potential for effective creation of youth employment should be encouraged on the continent. “We will hear of measures that have successfully harnessed science, technology and innovation to enhance the participation of women, youth and other marginalised groups in societies,” she said. She said all these will create an informed and enabling environment for African countries to make urgent decisions on the importance of investment in STI. Participants include experts, scientists, decision makers, youth, academics, representatives of the private sector and civil society. Among some of the subjects tackled include the need for graduates to have the skills required by employers, how funding can be increased for African research and development, and innovative ways to improve youth employment. United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) director, ICT science and technology Division Aida Opoku Mensah said If Africa has to continue registering positive economic growth, there is a need to address Africa’s innovation system. “A critical foundation of any innovation system is education and investing in its youth,” Mr Mensah said. This is because education system plays a vital role in human development and entrepreneurship Mr Mensah said competitions that cultivate in students enquiry and problem-solving skills and encourage them to address real life challenges should be encouraged. According to UNESCO's Science Report 2010, research and development (R&D) in Africa attracts significantly less public funding than other sectors such as education or health. Only some 0.3% of GDP is dedicated to R&D on average across the continent. This is seven times less than the investment made in industrialised countries. The Report shows that education is another obstacle. Access to higher education remains limited, and in 2008 enrolment was below 4 percent in one country out of four. Additionally, the report states that brain drain is severely affecting the continent: in 2009, the Network of African Science Academies estimated that at least one-third of Africa's scientists and technology graduates were living and working in developed countries. ENDS

Governance Deficits Challenges Development of STI

By Maxwell Awumah, Governance deficits and over-reliance on developmental aid has been identified as critical challenges to the development of Science, Technology and Innovation in Africa. Investment must come from member country’s national allocated budgets and not from gifts, aid or donor-driven. “Africa needs visionary leaders with clear sense of dignity, integrity and sovereignty for development especially in STI declares Aida Opoku-Mensah, Director, ICTs and Science Technology Division (ISTI) of UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA). “There must be conscious effort to generate the needed investments to propel the continent’s STI architecture for transformational development that is lacking. If we fail, it will be to our detriment,” she adds. Speaking to the WFSJ on the sideline of the first Africa STI Forum in Nairobi, Kenya, she said “shirking internally generated support to fund science, technology and innovation will redouble the yawning gap.” “The touted socio-economic development of country’s christened as Asia Tigers was knotted on STI and Africa cannot remain where it is now without looking ahead.” Opoku-Mensah said “Africa’s future is tied to its youth. Meeting their aspirations remain monumental challenges as evidenced by the Arab spring. Clamouring for economic improvement needs to be addressed otherwise a looming African spring beckons.” Dr George Afeti, development consultant said investment deficits involving prioritising and misdirection of funds constitute one aspect of the problem. Getting the people to appreciate the involvement of the private sector participation in STI will open many more doors for rapid development in Africa. “Cup-in-hand syndrome of financing development on the continent must cease, henceforth. There is no sustainability in begging.” Develop projects continue to spring up across Africa at the expense of bolstering STI architecture. He advocated leadership of Africa to redouble efforts at legislating science policies as it has the capacity to chart a new course, coordinate all related activities and partnerships in finding common solutions to common problems.

Africa’s Leadership Must Legislate Development of STI

Nairobi, April 1 Maxwell Awumah, The Kenyan government has taken a giant leap by developing a new STI policy, legislation and innovation systems to guide entrench the policy into the national development agenda. As part of the policy strategy, university and tertiary education and training has similar boost towards the implementation of sound STI to spearhead development. Professor Margaret Kamar, Minister of Higher Education, Science and Technology, Kenya disclosed this to WFSJ at the first Africa Forum on STI for Youth Employment, Human Capital Development and Inclusive Growth in Nairobi, Kenya.

(Photo By Arsenio Manhice) She believed this strategy will reposition the country to survive in the fast growing globalized knowledge-based world. “We believe these strategies will broaden the scope, policy, strategy, quality and quantity of teaching and learning of STI towards the continent’s rapid growth.” She is optimistic that “resolutions adopted at the end of the sessions will move Africa forward.” “This is the time to move from declarations, resolutions and models to real action. I hope the resolutions to be adopted will move Africa forward.” “STI has the capacity to move the continent’s aspiration to the next level and the economic imperatives will be determined on how we held the youth and contain them,” Aida Opoku-Mensah, Director ICT, Science and Technology Division, UNECA says. “Africa should invest its own resources in achieving the needed growth. This is time to be in the driving seat and refrain from depending on the agenda- setting of development partners,” she cautions stating that mindsets of academia, politicians, civil society groupings should change towards mainstreaming STI for accelerated development. Kamal El Kheshen, Vice President AfDB said “The continent ought to be knowledge producers and consumers of Africa’s contents than consumers of foreign products in all spheres.” He called for scaling up and collaboration of STI across board to engender social inclusiveness, competitiveness to help the informal sector to leapfrog and lead socio-economic development of the continent. Gretchen Kalonji, Assistant Director-General for Natural Sciences, UNESCO said his outfit is championing strategies to support inclusive growth, employment opportunities and sustainable development in Africa. Jean-Pierre Ezin, Commissioner for Human Resources , Science and Technology, AUC challenged the African Association of Sciences and the African University Associations to lead the STI crusade, fashion out a common strategy in order to network skills and resources to achieve accelerated development. “Priority in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) is driving the 2015 consolidated plan of action, which seeks to bring radical changes into the STI landscape in Africa.” The three-day forum is aimed to fast-track the development and implements sustainable solutions to Africa’s development challenges and mainstreaming entrepreneurship, SME development and innovation into STI concept. It was organized by the Kenyan government and the African Development Bank (AfDB), the African Union Commission (AUC), the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), and the UNESCO in collaboration with the Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA).

Africa Leadership Must Legislate Development of STI

Nairobi, April 1 By Maxwell Awumah Professor Margaret Kamar, Minister of Higher Education, Science and Technology, Kenya has said leadership of the continent must legislate the development of science, technology and innovation (STI) and guide its entrenchment into development paradigms to survive in the globalization and knowledge-based world. This calls for radical transformation of tertiary education and investment in institutions of higher learning to broaden the scope, policy, strategy, quality and quantity of teaching and learning of STI towards the continent’s rapid growth. Speaking at the opening of the first Africa Forum on STI for Youth Employment, Human Capital Development and Inclusive Growth, in Nairobi Kenya, she is optimistic that “resolutions adopted at the end of the sessions will move Africa forward.” It was organized by the Kenyan government and the African Development Bank (AfDB), the African Union Commission (AUC), the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), and the UNESCO in collaboration with the Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA). “This is the time to move from declarations, resolutions and models to real action.” “STI has the capacity to move the continent’s aspiration to the next level and the economic imperatives will be determined on how we held the youth and contain them,” Aida Opoku-Mensah, Director ICT, Science and Technology Division, UNECA says. “Africa should invest its own resources in achieving the needed growth. This is time to be in the driving seat and refrain from depending on the agenda- setting of development partners,” she cautions stating that mindsets of academia, politicians, civil society groupings should change towards mainstreaming STI for accelerated development. Kamal El Kheshen, Vice President AfDB said “The continent ought to be knowledge producers and consumers of Africa’s contents than consumers of foreign products in all spheres.” He called for scaling up and collaboration of STI across board to engender social inclusiveness, competitiveness to help the informal sector to leapfrog and lead socio-economic development of the continent. Gretchen Kalonji, Assistant Director-General for Natural Sciences, UNESCO said his outfit is championing strategies to support inclusive growth, employment opportunities and sustainable development in Africa. Jean-Pierre Ezin, Commissioner for Human Resources , Science and Technology, AUC challenged the African Association of Sciences and the African University Associations to lead the STI crusade, fashion out a common strategy in order to network skills and resources to achieve accelerated development. “Priority in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) is driving the 2015 consolidated plan of action, which seeks to bring radical changes into the STI landscape in Africa.” The three-day forum is aimed to fast-track the development and implements sustainable solutions to Africa’s development challenges and mainstreaming entrepreneurship, SME development and innovation into STI concept.