IAP Programmes

... capacity building for academies of science in Africa

Latest activity (2004)
The NETWORK OF AFRICAN SCIENCE ACADEMIES (NASAC) first science summit will be on the HIV/AIDS Pandemic in Africa: its implication on human development in the continent and the critical issues in its control." The summit will take place from 21-25 September in Abuja, Nigeria, hosted by the Nigerian Academy of Sciences. For more information and the registration form, contact: G. Okelo: Fax: 254-20-884.406; Email: aas@africaonline.co.ke.

Previous activities (2001-2003)

U.S. National Academies - African Academies of Science Visitors Programme:
Representatives from seven African academies of science (Kenya, Cameroon, Senegal, Ghana, Nigeria, Uganda, and the African Academy of Sciences) visited the US National Academies from April 1 to April 11 2003. This visit was part of an on-going programme on capacity building for academies of science in Africa, led by the Third World Academy of Sciences. For more, click here

Establishment of NASAC:
Presidents, or their representatives, of the nine academies of science in Africa that participated in the May 2001 Workshop on Capacity Building for Academies in Africa, met in Nairobi on 13 December 2001 at the headquarters of the African Academy of Sciences (AAS). Participants agreed to establish a network of science academies in Africa - The NETWORK OF AFRICAN SCIENCE ACADEMIES (NASAC), similar to the Association of Academies of Sciences in Asia (AASA). AAS will serve as the network secretariat. For additional information, contact G.B.A. Okelo, at aas@africaonline.co.ke

Capacity building workshop - Trieste:
An IAP workshop was held in Trieste from 16-18 May 2001, and focused on a critical issue that lies at the intersection of science and society - scientific capacity building in Africa and, more specifically, the role that science academies could play in this effort. Presently, there are only 9 merit-based science academies in Africa, a continent with 53 nations. The workshop brought together representatives from academies in both the South and North and provided a forum for research scientists to exchange information and ideas with science administrators. The ministers of science and technology from Kenya, Madagascar, Nigeria and South Africa were all in attendance. The workshop ended with a series of recommendations that could help lay the groundwork for strengthening the capacity of existing national science academies in Africa while creating new national and/or regional academies in African countries where such institutions do not currently exist.
The following documents are also available:

Programme
Detailed session reports
List of participants
Recommendations

More information ...

Academies in Africa, article published in the TWAS Newsletter vol. 13,2 2001.

African Academies Assemble Network article published in the TWAS Newsletter vol. 14,1 2002.