International Food Policy Research Institute
sustainable solutions for ending hunger and poverty
Technological innovation has often been viewed as a negative force in Africa’s development narratives. This image is starting to change as awareness on the role of innovation in economic growth continues to rise. The writing of a new African narrative is reflected in the decision of the African Union and the New Economic Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) to establish a High-Level Expert Panel on Modern Biotechnology that will report to a presidential summit of the African Union in January 2007 on science, technology and research. The panel’s preliminary findings focus on strategic options for creating and building regional technology innovation communities and hubs. More specifically, the panel: (a) stresses the role of technology in general and modern biotechnology in particular in regional economic integration and trade; (b) identifies priority areas in modern biotechnology of relevance to African development; (c) outlines critical capabilities needed for the development and safe use of modern biotechnology; (d) proposes measures for the harmonization of regulations needed to provide a supportive environment for the safe application of modern biotechnology; and (e) offers options for promoting international technology cooperation.
Calestous Juma (Kenya) is Professor of the Practice of International Development and Director of the Science, Technology and Globalisation Project at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government. Professor Juma’s work focuses on policy research on the applications of science and technology to sustainable development. He is a Foreign Associate of the US National Academy of Sciences (NAS) and is a Fellow of the Academy of Sciences for the Developing World (TWAS), the World Academy of Arts and Sciences and the New York Academy of Sciences. He coordinated the Task Force on Science, Technology and Innovation of the UN Millennium Project commissioned by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan and co-chairs the High-Level African Panel on Modern Biotechnology of the African Union and the New Partnership for Africa’s Development. He has served on several committees of NAS dealing with agriculture and natural resources, geographical information sciences, genetic resources and science advice. He is a former Executive Secretary of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity, founding Executive Director of the African Centre for Technology Studies in Nairobi and former Chancellor of the University of Guyana. He has won several international awards for his work on science, technology and sustainable development.