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Shaping the Future of
Science,Technology
and Innovation in Africa
Report on the Fourth African Youth Forumon Science and Technology (AYFST) Steering
Committee Meeting and Launch of the YouthInnovation Challenge Programme (Y I CAN)
July 13-16, 2009 - Mombasa, Kenya

The cover photo is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share
Alike 3.0 License. All other photos are copyright to ATPS © 2009

A report of the 2009 fourth African Youth Forum on Science and Technology (AYFST)
steering committee meeting and launch of the Youth Innovation Challenge Programme(Y I CAN) held in Mombasa, Kenya from July 13 - 16, 2009.
Published by the African Technology Policy Studies (ATPS) Network with support fromthe Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA)© 2009 African Technology Policy Studies (ATPS) Network
ISBN: 978-9966-7434-8-0

List of Abbreviations:
ACTS		

African Centre for Technology Studies		

Building in Agriculture

AGM		

Annual General Meeting

SET-DEV 		

Science, Ethics and Technological Responsibility in

ARIPO		

African Regional Intellectual Property Organization		

Developing and Emerging Countries

ASEE		

African Society for Ecological Economics

S&T		

Science and Technology

ASTI		

Agricultural Science, Technology and Innovation

SSA		

Sub-Saharan Africa

ATPS		

African Technology Policy Studies Network

ST&I		

Science, Technology and Innovation

AWFST 		African Women Forum for Science and Technology

SWOT		

Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats

AYFST		

African Youth Forum for Science and Technology

UDS 		

University of Development Studies

BTA		

Biotechnology Trust Africa

UNCST		

Uganda National Council for Science and Technology

BUZARDI 		

Bulindi Zonal Agricultural Research and 		USPTO 		United States Patent and Trademark Office		Development Institute

UYASTI		

Uganda Youth Association of Science and

CIAT 		

Centro Internacional de Agricultura Tropical		Technology Innovation

CTA		

Technical Centre for Agricultural andW&E		

Water and Environment		Rural Cooperation

WE CAN		

Women Innovation Challenge Programme

ECOWAS		

Economic Community of West African States

YADSTI		Youth Agency for Development of Science 		

EML		

Einstein Minds Lesotho		Technology and Innovations

EPO 		

European Patent Office

Y I CAN		Youth Innovation Challenge Programme

ESRI		

Economic and Social Research InstituteEU 		European Union

FARA		

Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa

HIV/AIDS		Human Immunodeficiency Virus/

		

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome

ICT 		

Information and Communication Technology

IFPRI 		International Food Policy Research Institute

IK		

Indigenous Knowledge

ILRI		

International Livestock Research Institute

IPR		Intellectual Property Rights

ISEE		

International Society for Ecological Economics

JPO		

Japan Patent Office

KEPSA		

Kenya Private Sector Alliance

MDGs		

Millennium Development Goals

NARO		

National Agricultural Research Organisation

NEPAD		New Partnership for Africa’s Development

NGOs		

Non Governmental Organisations

NIS		National Innovation Systems

OAPI		

Organisation Africaine de la Propriété Intellectuelle

RUFORUM

Regional Universities Forum for Capacity3

Shaping the Future of Science Technology and Innovation in Africa

About The African Technology
Policy Studies (ATPS) NetworkT

he African Technology Policy Studies (ATPS) Network is a leading multi-disciplinary networkof researchers, practitioners and policy makers that promotes science, technology andinnovation (ST&I) policy research, dialogue and practice, for African Development.

Its mission is to improve the quality of science, technology, and innovation research, policy andpractice for sustainable development in Africa, by Africans and for Africans. The fundamental
strategic goal of the ATPS is to build Africa’s ST&I capacity today for sustainable development
tomorrow. With a Secretariat Headquarters in Nairobi, the ATPS works through national
chapters in 23 countries of sub-Saharan Africa with a vision to cover the whole of the region
by 2015 (see Figure 1). The regional secretariat and the national chapters provide groundfacilities and platforms for ST&I capacity building at both regional and national levels.

Tunisia

Egypt

SenegalGambiaMali
Burkina Faso

Sierra Leone Cote d’ Ivoire
Liberia
Ghana

Benin

Nigeria

Ethiopia

Cameroun
UgandaKenya

Tanzania

LEGENDATPS National Chapters/
Country Members
African Regional
Representation on ATPS
Board

Malawi
ZambiaMozambique
Zimbabwe
Botswana
Mauritius

Potential National Chapters(Under Review)

Swaziland
LesothoSouth Africa

Figure 1: Where we work

4

Madagascar

About the Technical Centre
for Agricultural and Rural
Cooperation (CTA)T

he Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA) was establishedin 1983 under the Lomé Convention between the ACP (African, Caribbean andPacific) Group of States and the European Union Member States. Since 2000, it has
operated within the framework of the ACP-EC Cotonou Agreement.
CTA’s tasks are to develop and provide services that improve access to information
for agricultural and rural development, and to strengthen the capacity of ACP
countries to produce, acquire, exchange and utilise information in this area. CTA’s
programmes are designed to: provide a wide range of information products andservices and enhance awareness of relevant information sources; promote theintegrated use of appropriate communication channels and intensify contacts andinformation exchange (particularly intra-ACP); and develop ACP capacity to generate
and manage agricultural information and to formulate ICM strategies, including those
relevant to science and technology. CTA’s work incorporates new developments
in methodologies and cross-cutting issues such as gender and social capital.

5

Shaping the Future of Science Technology and Innovation in Africa

ForewordThe African Youth Forum on Science and Technology(AYFST) was initiated by the ATPS in 2005 incollaboration with the Technical Centre for
Agricultural and Rural Cooperation - CTA, the Netherlands.
The success of the AYFST during its first three years
after its formation in providing a platform for African
Young Professionals to build capacity in ST&I policy
research, policy dialogue and policy practice, has been very
encouraging.
At the 2006 youth congress in Kampala Uganda, I daredthe youth to dream big. Borrowing from a spiritual phrase,
I challenged them saying, “If your dream doesn’t scare you,then it is not good enough.” Today I can proudly declare thatthey have truly lived up to that challenge. From their Planof Action 2007 – 2010, it is clear that they have dared to
dream big. To sustain the momentum gathered and propel itto flight, now more than ever, the AYFST needs to re-visit its
plans, seek new strategies for improvement and accelerate
its execution. As the common adage goes, “failing to plan isplanning to fail.”Time and again the youth in Africa have elaborated theissues that prevent them from realizing their potential andovercoming the constraints of Africa’s development. The
AYFST provides an ideal vessel for the youth to realise their
dreams of overcoming these challenges through science
technology and innovation. The ATPS pledges its unflagging
support for the AYFST by investing in their plans but more
importantly by offering the much needed guidance andmentorship through its national chapters.
While being cautious not to take over the mantle ofleadership from young people, we believe it is necessary
to walk beside them and help nurture and transform theirideas into practical solutions through capacity buildingin science, technology and innovation. In doing this, we
envisage a new crop of empowered youths emerging to takeforward their own activities in their countries under the
careful mentorship of the more experienced members of
the network. These youths will in turn vitalize the activitiesof the ATPS chapters and also ensure good governanceat both national and regional level, through their active

6

participation in programmes. It is for this reason that I am
pleased to note that during the fourth Steering Committee
Meeting, the AYFST resolved to mainstream its activities
under the ATPS Phase VI Strategic Plan 2008 - 2012. This
brings some level of clarity in the communication between
the ATPS National Chapter Coordinators and the AYFSTNational Chapter Coordinators in their countries.
I am also pleased to report that the launch of the new
Youth Innovation Challenge Programme (Y I CAN) which
followed the Steering Committee Meeting was a major
success. The Y I CAN ‘read as “Why I Can” has beendeveloped under the auspices of the ATPS Phase VI StrategicPlan, 2008 – 2012 and will be implemented through the
AYFST. The programme is designed to build a culture ofinnovation amongst young people in Africa through targeted
partnerships within the quadruple helix (Researchers,
Private Sector Actors, Policy Makers and Civil Society) andthrough entrepreneurship incubation programmes. The
activities of the Y I CAN programme were also successfully
mainstreamed under the ATPS Phase VI Strategic Plan 2008
– 2012.
ATPS would like to congratulate these young people for
their commitment in seeing through a week of action
and accomplishment and would like to assure them of its
continued support.
Dr. Kevin Chika Urama
Executive Director, ATPSTable of Contents
1.0

Introduction

8

2.0

ATPS Phase VI Strategic Plan & Planned Youth Capacity Building Activities

12

3.0

Review of Progress in Implementation of the PoA (2007 – 2010)
and Strategies for Improvement

14

4.0

AYFST In-Country Briefs

18

5.0

Revised Plan of Activities

26

6.0

Review of Deliberations and Resolutions made

28

7.0

Review of Communication and Outreach Strategies

29

8.0

AYFST Membership and National Chapters

31

9.0

Election of AYFST Steering Committee

33

10.0

Launch of the Youth Innovation Challenge Programme - Y I CAN

36

11.0

Conclusion

45

Annex 1: Consolidated Participants List:

46

Annex 2: Programme of Events48

Annexes7

Shaping the Future of Science Technology and Innovation in Africa

1.0 Introduction:The African Youth Forum on Science and Technology(AYFST) was initiated by the African Technology
Policy Studies Network (ATPS) in 2005 incollaboration with the Technical Centre for Agricultural
and Rural Cooperation - CTA, the Netherlands. Since
then, the AYFST has provided a useful platform for African
Young Professionals to build capacity in ST&I policy
research, policy dialogue and policy practice. The forum(and its website http://www.ayfst.org) was formerly launchedduring the second African youth congress on science andtechnology in Accra, Ghana co-organised by the African
Technology Policy Studies Network (ATPS) CTA, CSIR,
among other partners. The ATPS will continue to manage
the AYFST website and its secretariat based at the ATPS
headquarters in Nairobi Kenya.

1.1 AYFST Vision
Empowered African communities thatenjoy sustainable livelihoods

1.2 AYFST Mission
To build the capacity of African youth in agriculture,science, technology and innovation and empower
them to participate in policy formulation processes
and advocacy for sustainable development

1.3 Objectives
To build the capacity of African youth through training,
information sharing, networking and dialogue in relevant
topical and developmental issues
To promote youth participation in policy formulation andimplementation processes at all levels concerning agriculturescience, technology & innovation and development
To promote a culture of science technology and innovation
consciousness among the African young generation
To promote youth-led, demand-driven research anddevelopment initiatives in agriculture, science, technology
and innovation

8

1.4 Goal of the fourth
Steering Committee Meeting
The AYFST is amongst the priority programmes of the
ATPS Phase VI Strategic Plan, 2008 - 2012. The ATPS
therefore wanted to take stock of AYFST progress andengage with the AYFST steering committee to inform its
implementation of planned youth activities under the Phase
VI Plan. The Steering Committee is one of the decision
making organs of the AYFST. With a representation fromten sub-Saharan African countries, its key mandates include:•••

To draw the programme and planof action to guide the pursuit of
AYFST’s strategic objectives
To provide support in planning andexecution of AYFST programmes in
consultation with the ATPS Secretariat
To review the progress of AYFST and advise
the Secretariat on necessary changes/
adjustments in order to achieve its targets

The Steering Committee started the process ofdeveloping the strategic plan of action (PoA): 2007 –2010 at its sitting in June 2006 in Accra, Ghana. This PoA
was approved during the third congress in July 2007 in
Kampala, Uganda. The PoA includes the top priorities
for AYFST and may be revised from time to time by thesteering committee in order to meet the overall goals.
The objective of this PoA is to provide the impetus to theAfrican youth-led actions and interventions in agriculturescience and technology for Africa’s economic growth anddevelopment by redefining and improving the strategies

Introduction

AYFST delegates together with ATPS
staff and international partners during
the Mombasa forum

in priority areas in order to enable the African youth
and their communities realize sustainable livelihoods.
The PoA is anchored on the following key strategies:

•
•
•
•
•

Building the capacity of youth inagriculture, science and technology.
Sharing of information andnetworking amongst the youth.
Promoting youth-led researchand innovation projects
Enhancing youth participation in
S&T policy and decision-making
Facilitating career mentorshipby senior researchers

Cognizant of the important role of monitoringand evaluation in improving efficiency, sustainability
and timely achievement of targets, the Steering
Committee provided for a mid-term review of theimplementation of the action plan at the end of 2008.

phase VI strategy and youth capacity building initiatives,
reviewing AYFST communication and outreach strategies,
including revamping its website reviewing its membership
recruitment drive and how to increase and sustain its
membership, and consolidating the membership of the
AYFST Steering Committee and elects its leadership.

1.6 Expected Outcomes
•
•
•
•
•

The progress of implementation of the PoA(2007 – 2010) reviewed and recommendations
made for improvements/adjustments;
The themes for 2009 – 2010 deliberated,
agreed and harmonized with the ATPS
phase VI strategy (2008 - 2012);
AYFST communication and outreach strategy
reviewed and recommendations adopted;
AYFST governance structures underthe ATPS discussed and agreed;Election of new AYFST
Executives completed; andThe membership recruitment and retention
strategies discussed and agreed.

1.5 Objectives of the fourth
Steering Committee Meeting•

The objectives included; reviewing progress made in
the implementation of the PoA (2007 – 2010) anddeliberate on strategies for improvement, revising theactivities carded for 2009 – 2010 in line with the ATPS

The ATPS planned the Steering Committee meeting to run
alongside the launch of the Youth Innovation Challenge (Y I
CAN) Programme. The launch was scheduled to take place
the day after the conclusion of the Steering Committee

9Shaping the Future of Science Technology and Innovation in Africa“...impossible is not a word you will find in any innovators
dictionary. I can only become an innovator if I begin todwell less on the why I can’t, and more on why I can.”Dr. Kevin Urama, Executive Director, ATPS

Meeting to include a series of engaging and interactive
sessions culminating in an official launch reception. It was
expected that the Y I CAN activities would complement the
AYFST programme and be integrated into the Plan of Action(2007 – 2010). The ATPS reached out to partners who
collaborated on the recently concluded Women and Young
Professionals in Science Competitions in 2008 (AGRA,RUFORUM, FARA and NEPAD) inviting them to partnerwith the ATPS in the new Y I CAN programme.

1.7 Methodology
Einstein is often credited for saying “The definition of
insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and
expecting a different result.” The primary purpose of
the entire week of events was to promote a culture ofinnovation and stimulate a renewed sense of creativity
amongst the youth.
The events of the week were therefore planned andstructured with aim of inspiring the young men and women
present to become the change agents Africa needs andinstill in them a renewed sense of hope and confidence
in Africa’s renaissance through science technology andinnovation. “We set out to assemble and reinvigorate agroup of young people who are equipped and ready to lead

“We set out to assemble andreinvigorate a group of young people
who are equipped and ready tolead a critical mass of African youth;
young people who believe in our
vision enough to stir up a science
technology and innovation movementfor development in Africa.”
Dr. Sheila Ochugboju (ATPS SeniorCommunications Officer)

10

a critical mass of African youth; young people who believein our vision enough to stir up a science technology andinnovation movement for development in Africa.” said Dr.
Sheila Ochugboju, ATPS Senior Communications Officer
during the opening session. In bringing together this groupof young people, the meeting also served a secondary
purpose; to gather feedback about past AYFST activities andtheir valuable input on the planned Y I CAN initiative andmore importantly to design the next stage of activities. To
achieve these objectives, a methodology known as “PeerAssist” was therefore deployed for the meetings.

About Peer Assist
A peer assist is a meeting that brings together a group ofpeers to get feedback on a problem, project, or activity. The
meeting seeks to learn from participants’ knowledge andexperience with topics related to the problem, project or
activity. A peer assist can happen before an activity to help
with the planning process, or during an activity to help steer
the direction. The benefits of Peer Assist include helping
you to:•••••Learn how others would approach your issue
Develop ideas and solutions to your problems
with the collective input of your peers
Gain input and insights frompeople outside your team
Learn new approaches or methods
to solving problems
Develop stronger bonds with your colleagues

Diversity
Diversity was the underlying motivation throughout theplanning and implementation stages of the Mombasa
forum with an aim to stimulate creativity, full participation
and above all innovation. The event featured a diverse
range of activities including; formal presentations, breakout discussions, informal discussions, plenary discussions
and a gala reception on the penultimate night (Refer toAnnex 2 for the full programme of events). Perhaps one
its most unique elements was the opportunity createdfor youths to interact with other participants from

Introduction

William Kamkwamba from Malawi was forced todrop out of school at age 14 because his family could
no longer afford tuition. He set out to study energy andbuild windmills on his own. Kamkwamba, now 20, built
his windmill, by lashing blue-gum tree trunks together
for the base and adding flattened plastic pipes forthe blades and bike parts for the turbine, all the while
relying on a textbook donated to his local library.
His story traveled over the Internet, and environmental
activists and venture capitalists have since teamed
up to fund his education and projects. Kamkwamba’s
story demonstrates how need and motivation, alongwith a tiny spark of globalization, contribute toinnovation that’s both powerful and inspirational.

parallel workshops organised by the ATPS namely;

1.8•

To ensure proper regional representation and ownership of
the ATPS Phase VI Planned activities, the ATPS committed
funding to support participation by the wider youth
community in all its national chapters. One participantfrom each selected country was invited to ensure equal
distribution between countries.

•

The Women Innovation Challenge
Programme (WE CAN) composedof Strategic women leaders who are
driving a new innovation network topromote women’s engagement in ST&I
Science, Ethics and Technological
Responsibility in Developing and Emerging
Countries; SET-DEV, which gave the youth
delegates a chance to contribute to theprocess of writing an African manifesto
for science technology and innovation

The organizers invited an eclectic mix of key speakers
drawn from diverse disciplines in agriculture, science andtechnology who have excelled in their respective fields ofexpertise. They delivered presentations which inspired the
young people present to work on turning brilliant ideas
into tangible technologies or innovations for addressing
explicit challenges facing Africa. As Dr. Kevin Urama puts
it, “impossible is not a word you will find in the innovators
dictionary. I can only become an innovator if I dwell lesson the why I can’t, and focus more on why I can.”Participation and Funding

The AYFST National Chapter Coordinators automaticallyqualified for participation and their attendance wasendorsed by the ATPS National Chapter Coordinators. In
ATPS National Chapters that do not have AYFST members,
the respective National Chapter Coordinators wererequested to nominate one participant, with the potential
for recruitment as AYFST champions in their respective
countries. They were encouraged to nominate young
innovators or science professionals in their respective
countries especially young women in the interest of genderbalance due to a predominantly male representation in past
AYFST events. The meeting was funded jointly by ATPS and
CTA.

11

Shaping the Future of Science Technology and Innovation in Africa

2.0 ATPS Phase VI Strategic
Plan and Planned YouthCapacity Building Activities

F

2.1 Strategic Priorities of thephase VI youth programme:

ollowing the opening remarks by Dr. Kevin
Urama, ATPS Executive Director which wasread on his behalf by Dr. Sheila Ochugboju,
ATPS Senior Communications Officer, The ATPS
Communications and Outreach Officer, Marsden
Momanyi gave a brief presentation about the ATPS Phase
VI Strategic Plan and its vision for the youth in Africa.
The following is a summary of the presentation:

International Cooperation& Partnership

g&

rin
nito

Youth & Gender
Empowerment

Mo

Communication &Stakeholder Dialogue

Research Capacity Building

Outreach Knowledge Brokerage &Policy Advocacy

The planned youth activities have been designed within
the Youth and Gender Empowerment Strategic
objective of the ATPS Phase VI Strategic Plan.Youth andGender Empowerment is one of three key strategic
objectives, the other two are Research and Capacity
Building and International Cooperation and Partnerships.
As with the other strategic objectives there are threemain cross cutting themes in the youth programme
i.e.: Training and sensitization, Communication andStakeholder Dialogue and Outreach, Knowledge Brokerageand Policy Advocacy. The activities under the youth
programme are designed to mobilize youths to build theircapacities in S&T research and policy decision making
thereby empowering them to contribute positively toefforts to achieve the MDGs in sub-Saharan Africa.

n

atio

lu
Eva

Training & Sensitization• Mobilize the youth and empower them toharness ST&I for development in Africa;• Support and facilitate regional knowledge
sharing and cooperation among African youth;• Facilitate and promote youth
engagement in agriculture, science andtechnology, and social entrepreneurshipprogrammes in their countries,• Facilitate ST&I career mentoring
for African youths by their seniorcolleagues in Africa and in Diaspora;• Provide targeted research training and capacity
building especially in agriculture, S&T researchand practice to address the declining expertiseand growing disinterest in the sector; and• Promote youth involvement in
ATPS research and other MDG
related S&T projects elsewhere.

ATPS Strategic Priority pillars;Youth andGender is one of the strategic priorities of
the ATPS under the phase VI strategic plan2008 - 2012

12

ATPS Phase VI Strategic Plan and Planned Youth Capacity Building Activities

2.2 Expected Outcomes:
•
•
•

•
•
•

Enhanced skills/capacities in agriculture, S&T
research and policy advocacy;
Improved skills in S&T research and project
management and implementation practices
among African youths;
Increased youth participation in S&T research
projects and other innovative and productive
interventions at local, regional and national
levels;Increased internships at various ST&I related
research institutions and non-governmentalorganisations in Africa and elsewhere;
A functioning networking platform; forum[online and offline] in which the youth can
exchange views and opinions; andIncreased awareness among the youth oninter-related policy issues in agriculture,science and technology and the need for
multi-disciplinary approaches in ST&I researchand policy making.

•

•

•

2.3 Planned Activities
The planned youth capacity building activities will be carriedout under the umbrella of the ATPS phase VI strategic plan(2008-2012) Y I CAN programme as the flagship for AYFST:• Innovation Challenge Awards: A
competitive award of annual prizes foroutstanding achievements by African Youths inaddressing development challenges in specificsectors, including climate change adaptationand mitigation in Africa; agricultural innovation
systems; public health and disease prevention;water and sanitation, and sustainable
management of ecosystem services• Innovation Incubator Initiatives (3-Is):
This is a strategic mentorship initiative wherecompetition winners are given a chance•

to translate their ideas (tacit or codified)
into actual technologies or innovations foraddressing specific challenges in a production
or service chain in specified sectors or
stakeholder communities.
Youth Internship and Post Doctoral
Fellowship programme: opportunities for
short-term mentoring of students at college,
undergraduate and postgraduate levels in
ST&I policy related subjects. The 3-6 month
Placements and staff exchange programmes.
Integrated leadership &Entrepreneurship Training: Aimed atmolding innovative youth leaders with courses
which place an emphasis on self- disciplineand self-mastery to guide principled actions.
This also includes training and mentorshipfor scientific writing; science publications, andscience journalism.
Integrated Peer-to-Peer Collaboration:
Organizing an annual African Youth congress/
ST&I career development programme,
formation and lending support to Youth inscience clubs. Facilitating an online network
to increase membership in AYFST, strengthencommunication, sharing of experiences andlearning.
Maintenance of the AYFST website by
the ATPS

13

Shaping the Future of Science Technology and Innovation in Africa

3.0 Review of Progress in
Implementation of the PoA (2007 –2010) & Strategies for Improvement
African youth agenda in agriculture, science and technology
in Africa’s development process. Further, it had the potentialof advancing its role as the key driver of economic
development.

Challenges that AYFST Set Out toAddress:

Presentation by Winnie Alum2.1 Overview of AYFST HistoryYoung people world wide and in Africa particularly
are disadvantaged in many ways. They havecountless concerns that need to be addressed but veryminimal channels at their disposal. Such major concerns
include bridging the inter and intra-generational isolation,
mentorship avenues, fabricating a popular constituency for
science and technology in Africa, disseminating informationand expertise as well as embracing the voices of the youth
in policy making.
ATPS in conjunction with CTA organised the first youth
congress, which was held in June 2005 in Nairobi, Kenya.
That year’s theme was Youth and Unemployment/WealthCreation: Opportunities in Agriculture, Science and Technology. It
marked the beginning of broad collective youth engagement
in youth led development network. This forum drew over
80 brilliant innovators from 21 African countries withdiverse backgrounds. Among other issues, the obstacles
facing the young generation in their pursuit for employment
and wealth creation for Africa were tackled. Several key
outcomes emerged in the process. An e-forum; african_
youth_congress@yahoogroups.com was one of the outcomesof the process. Additionally, a resolution to form a youth
led forum on science & technology (AYFST) materialized
as well. AYFST arose as a platform that would advance the14• Limited and declining capacities for agriculturaland scientific research• The changing paradigm of research inagriculture, science and technology• Lack of adequate channels for networking andinformation sharing• Exclusion of the youth from the policy process

AYFST Plan of Action (2007 – 2010)
This Plan of Action informed the discussions and design ofthe youth and gender capacity building programme of the
ATPS phase VI strategic plan 2008 - 2012. (Refer to page 12)

Young people in Africa have countlessconcerns that need to be addressedbut very minimal channels at theirdisposal to do so. There is need tobridge inter and intra-generational
isolation, access mentorship
opportunities and fabricate apopular constituency for scienceand technology in Africa. There is anurgent need to amplify the voices ofthe youth to ensure their input into
crucial policy making decisions.

Review of Progress in Implementation of the PoA (2007-2010) & Strategies for Implementation

Strategic Approaches

Aim

Expected Outcomes•
Capacity building of youth organisations inAgriculture Science and Technology and thedevelopment of principles of cooperation
among youth development organisations.

To equip the youth with skills and knowledge
needed to generate and mange relevant
development initiatives••

Advocacy action to advance science andtechnology, sustainable agriculture anddevelopment and mobilise political andcommunity support.

Youth led, demand driven research andinnovation on priority themes on, scienceand technology, sustainable agriculture anddevelopment to inform new initiatives andmanagement.

Extending scientific and technical support
in Community Extension & Education
programmes,Youth Centres of excellencein Agriculture, Science & Technology andsustainable development

To mobilise political, private sector andcommunity support for Agriculture Scienceand Technology in Africa
To promote meaningful youth participationin Agriculture Science and Technology Policy
development and implementation processes•••
To promote generation of new informationand knowledge that will stimulate innovation
among the African youth.

•
•
•

•
To catalyse the adoption of appropriatetechnologies to improve the local farming
systems•••
Sharing of information and networking tobuild a strong youth led coalition championing
Agriculture Science ,Technology andinnovation as a key driver to sustainable
development

To enable replication and/expansion ofbest practices in Agriculture Science andTechnology••

Improved project management
practices for better production anddelivery of services to communities
Improved capacity through skills
development and “knowledge
products” generated by the network
on a series of pilot subjects to serve
the priorities established by the groupin its action plan.

Increased political, private sector andcommunity support for agriculture,indigenous knowledge and appropriatetechnologies.
Increased budgetary allocation for
Agriculture Science and Technology
within the national budgets andcommunity decentralised funds
Increased meaningful participation of
the African youth in Policy formulationand implementation processes at bothnational and regional levels

Improved access to indigenous
knowledge
Improved project management andimplementation practices
Increased number of innovative andproductive interventions implemented
Increased productivity

Increased number of local projects
scaling up their activities
Increased productive capacities at the
local communities
Increased awareness of the existing
and appropriate technologies.

A functioning networking mechanism;
forum [online and offline] in which allparties can participate effectively atwill on broad basis and/or in specificcooperation topics, involving its
ongoing evaluation, feedback of theresults, and adaptation.
Increased awareness among the youth
on Agriculture, S&T issues
Greater cross border cooperation

Matrix showing the AYFST Plan of Action

15

Shaping the Future of Science Technology and Innovation in Africa

Objectives of the AYFST Strategicplan and Plan of Action••••

Spell out strategies of implementation thatwill enhance the achievement of the goal andobjectives of the AYFST
To identify priority activities and responsible
persons/action partners
To provide an avenue and basis for resource
mobilization and management of AYFST
To outline the logical framework for
implementing the AYFST proposed activities

2.2 Overview of Progress
towards the Implementation ofPlan of Action 2007 – 2010
The second youth congress was held in June 2006 in Accra,
Ghana under the theme of “Food security and health forsustainable development in Africa: Perspectives from the youth.”
The key outcomes included the launch of AYFST and its
website http://www.ayfst.org. National level youth workshops
were held after the congress in Kenya, Uganda, Ghana,
Nigeria, Benin, Malawi and Lesotho. A radio talk show was
conducted over the Ghana national radio station on thetheme of the congress.
The third youth congress was held in Kampala - Uganda inJune 2007 under the theme of “Role of the youth in achieving
the MDGs: Implications for ST&I.” Some of the key outcomes
include a national radio talk show that focused on thetheme. The draft AYFST strategic plan (2007 – 2010) andorganizational/governance structure was discussed andapproved. The ATPS/CTA/AGRA/FARA/RUFORUM/NEPAD
youth competition was announced.

Achievements of AYFST ProgrammeOver 230 African youths from 21 African countries havebenefited from three regional youth congresses heldin Kenya, Ghana and Uganda in 2005, 2006 and 2007
respectively. The congresses focused on youth employment
and youth leadership in HIV/AIDS prevention; addressing

16

food insecurity and health for sustainable development in
Africa, and more recently, the role of youths in achieving
the MDGs in Africa. These programmes have been very
successful in creating awareness and sustaining interest
amongst African youths in ST&I research and policy related
issues in Africa, empowering the youth to participate
actively in ST&I research, local interventions and social
entrepreneurship programmes. The continued engagementand dialogue among the youths is enhanced through the
AYFST Website http://www.ayfst.org.
AYFST has been able to build the capacity of African youth
through training, information sharing, networking anddialogue in relevant topical and developmental issues. The
website offers information on training opportunities for
instance E-forum discussions on topical issues.
AYFST has been represented in the YPARD strategicplanning meeting in 2006 - Netherlands, GFAR triennial
meeting 2006 New Delhi, Women scientist conference,
2006 – Uganda, ATPS 2006 Annual meeting in Maputo,
and 2007 CTA sixth Advisory Committee Meeting.Youngscientists have been nominated for Capacity buildingin scientific writing to take place this year (2009) in
Ghana. Furthermore, there is promotion of knowledge
development through essay/knowledge contests such as the2005 essay competition and 2008 ATPS/CTA/AGRA/FARA/RUFORUM/NEPAD youth in science competitions.
AYFST has increased youth participation in Policy
formulation and implementation processes at alllevels concerning Agriculture Science, Technology &Innovation and development. In 2006, post congresscountry workshops were held and they involved relevant
government officials. In Kenya, the Permanent Secretary in
the Ministry of Science and Technology, Professor Crispus
Kiamba, and the commissioner for trade and industry
graced the occasion. In 2006, AYFST Kenya chapter
presented to the government and development agencies
a paper on youth perspectives on Science, Technology &Innovation in Kenya. This paper contained key issues andaction areas for the youth. In July 2007, AYFST was invited
to make a presentation and a case for the youth in the ST&I

Review of Progress in Implementation of the PoA (2007 – 2010) & Strategies for Improvement

Policy Stakeholders workshop.
AYFST has also managed to promote a culture of science
technology and innovation consciousness among theAfrican young generation. AYFST members have had
several exhibitions including the national science week
in Uganda in July 2007, Institute of electric and electricalengineering institute exhibition in 2007, which was held in
Nairobi, and the science symposium conference in Uganda
AYFST has promoted youth-led demand driven research anddevelopment initiatives in agriculture, science, technology
and innovation. AYFST Uganda chapter in collaboration
with NARO BuZARDI and CIAT is working with youth
groups to promote agriculture for income generation.

“AYFST has succeeded inbuilding the science, technology
and innovation capacity of
African youth through training,
information sharing, networking
and dialogue in relevant topicaland developmental issues.”
Members of the AYFST on a field trip to the
Elmina Castle during the second youth congress
held in June 2006 in Ghana

17

Shaping the Future of Science Technology and Innovation in Africa

it aims at promoting a culture of science, technology and

4.0 AYFST In-Country Briefs
4.1 AYFST Uganda (UYASTI)“The limited input of scienceand technology (S&T) todevelopment has led to wide
disparities between the poorand the rich in Uganda andthere is no way Africa and,
Uganda, in particular, canattain a booming economy
without the utilization of S&T.” Engineer Sam Ssenkungu,
the Ugandan commissioner of Industry and Technology,
said during the launch of the Uganda Youth Association for
Science, Technology and Innovation (UYASTI) in Kampala.
After the formation of the African Youth Forum on Scienceand Technology (AYFST) at the second African Regional
Youth congress in Accra, Ghana, Ugandan youth participantsat the congress formed the Ugandan Youth Association for
Science Technology and Innovation (UYASTI) with an aim tobring AYFST closer to the Ugandan youth and to empower
them through science, technology & innovation for wealthcreation and employment.

Mission:The Ugandan national chapter aims to empower the
Ugandan youth through science, technology & innovation
for wealth creation and employment.

Objectives:
One of the objectives of this chapter is to build thecapacity of Ugandan youth through training, information
sharing, networking and dialogue in relevant topical anddevelopmental issues. It also strives to promote youth
participation in policy formulation and implementation
processes at all levels concerning agriculture science,technology and innovation for development. In addition,

As Presented by Herbert Lwanga,
AYFST Uganda Vice Chair

18

Science and technology
outreach programme••

Intended to publicize ST&I.
Attract young people into S&T
carriers

Capacity building programme

Training young scientists in a
number of areas (management skills,
entrepreneurship skills, communication
skills etc

Mentorship programme

Aimed at mentoring young Ugandanscientists

Table showing UYASTI’s Key Programme areas

it aims at promoting a culture of science, technology andinnovation among the Ugandan youth as well as youth-led,demand-driven research and development initiatives inagriculture, science, technology and innovation.

Achievements:
The association has a management committee headed by
the chairperson. Members are involved in several ST&I
activities such as exhibitions & ST&I contests. Remarkably,
the association has been able to create a number oflinkages with a number of key sector actors both locallyand internationally like UNCST, UNAS, and NARO. The
programme has an advisory council headed by the ATPS
national coordinator. AYFST Uganda chapter has on several
occasions been invited in a number of conferences forpresentations and knowledge sharing.

Challenges
Major challenges to scientific talent development include;
identifying ways to make science attractive and accessible
to young people, and generating a research climate in
Uganda. Research allows creativity, innovation and open
communication, free flows of ideas, knowledge and talents.
Like many other sub-Saharan countries young peoplein Uganda are faced with society’s lack of confidence inAYFST In-Country Briefs

youth scientific endeavors. This is accompanied by the lackof access to adequate resources to facilitate the smooth
operationalisation and effective performance of the AYFST
Uganda chapter.

Future Plans
Future plans include training AYFST members in enterprisedevelopment based on science and technology approaches.
This training will cover all aspects of gender and enterprisedevelopment, as well as the upgrading of their technicalabilities to transmit their knowledge effectively tocommunity partners.
UYASTI also plans to promote the development of ideas
into practice and commercialization of youth generated
products. Its members will liaise with relevant national
institutions in measures to boost sales, produce trade
publications, business guides and sales procedures. They
will also organise and publicize public auctions to provide
market access for products generated by the youth. UYASTI
also plans to enhance networking to provide linkages
with organisations and institutions working in the areasof science and technology. The chapter also aims to trackprogress by implementing an effective monitoring andevaluation strategy and carry out regular visits to all project
activities to report on progress.

4.2

AYFST Malawi

The importance of scienceand technology is recognized
by Government of Malawi.
The Government hasestablished a Science andtechnology commission. It’s
Science and technology policy
promotes participation of all Malawians in the development
and application of S&T with special emphasis on women,
youth and other special interest groups.

Role of Malawian Youth in Science &Technology••••

Campaign for strategic education in S&T
Behaviour change
Entrepreneurship engagement
Advocacy

AYFST-Malawi
•
•
•
•
•
•

The AYFST-Malawi sensitisation forum wasconducted in 2007
The youth were sensitized on science andtechnology issues and were recruited into
AYFST
Participants were mainly drawn fromeducational institutions and research institutes
AYFST was established with a national steeringcommittee
Composition of the steering committee wasbased on institutions and not individuals.
The National Steering Committee was
mandated to come up with an action plan

Objectives for AYFST Malawi

As presented by George Kanthiti• Mobilize the Youth and empower them toharness ST&I for development in Malawi.
• Support and facilitate knowledge sharing andcooperation among Malawian Youth.

19

Shaping the Future of Science Technology and Innovation in Africa• Facilitate and promote youth engagement inagriculture, science and technology and social
entrepreneurship programmes.
• Facilitate ST&I career mentoring for Malawian
Youths by their senior colleagues.
• Promote Youth involvement in related ST&I
project.

Challenges and recommendations
Since its inception in 2007 progress has been slow for
the AYFST in Malawi, due to lack of adequate support
from key institutions, the absence of a secretariat and thetransient nature of the youth demographic with several
members proceeding for further studies, employment andin search of business opportunities. The following are therecommendations for improvement:• Learn from AYFST-Malawi progress• Establish a secretariat within an institution:
Department of science and technology• Garner support from institutions• Increase awareness and networking• Take advantage of funding opportunities thathave been created for the youth: Push forsupport of entrepreneurship projects thatmake use of science and technology“One of the major challenges of theAfrican Youth Forum on Science andTechnology - Malawi Chapter has
been the transient nature of the
youth demographic where several
members proceed each year for
further studies, employment and in
search of business opportunities,”
20

A hydro-power project designed andmanaged by youths in Malawi

AYFST In-Country Briefs

4.3 AYFST Nigeria
AYFST Nigeria wasofficially launched in March
21, 2007 by the former
Minister of Information
and Culture, Federal
Republic of Nigeria,
Barr John Nnia Nwodo.
The event took place
during a conference organised by the AYFST Nigeria incollaboration with ATPS. The theme of the conference was“Basket of Opportunities: Refocusing the Youth towards
Agriculture Wealth Creation and HIV/AIDS Prevention”.
The conference was organised in line with AYFST planof action 2007-2010. This plan of action is a result of
several consultations amongst the African youth on how
to organise their voices and consolidate their activities tomake substantial impacts on Africa’s development

Objective of the Workshop:• To build the capacity and enhance the skills ofyouth in school and out of school• For inclusive participation• To officially start off the AYFST Nigeria
Network• Catalyst for action

the potentials of agriculture in creating employment andwealth in Nigeria.

The government and other agencies should intensify
efforts to promote the acquisition of entrepreneurship in
agro-business by youth
Agricultural education should be encouraged throughscholarships and provision of soft loans to the young
graduate agriculturalists who are ready to go to the farm
The youth should form co-operative organisations toenable them access credit facilities

There should be improved agro-research to increase yieldand reduce risk in agro-business
The youth should be recruited for agricultural extension
services to provide peer to peer education on the need toembrace agro-business

The participants also analyzed the reasons for vast
unemployment among the youth in Nigeria which include:

Communiqué:• The inability of the government to develop
sources of revenue outside the oil sector• The negative perception of the youth towards
agriculture and a strong bias towards whitecollar jobs
• The problem of “ghost” workers in Nigeria’s
civil service• The refusal by the over aged workers to retire• Lack of innovation exposure and expertise• High level of corruption and political instability• Poor policy formulation and implementationby those in authority.
• Lack of motivation, energy and vigour• The decaying educational system

The youth looked at how they can be involved in tapping

As a prelude, AYFST Nigeria successfully participated in

Outcomes of the Workshop:
The workshop exposed youth participants to a new, criticaland creative thinking on the essence of entrepreneurship,
wealth creation, agricultural practices and skills acquisition
They were provoked to discussion and finding solutions to
the theme of the workshop and challenged to participate
actively in policy processes, policy dialogue and policy
practice on issues that have direct effect on them. It
also resulted in the recruitment of 92 youths into themembership of AYFST.

As presented by Victor Emeka, AYFST Nigeria

21

Shaping the Future of Science Technology and Innovation in Africa

a live call in show with the Nigerian Television Authority(NTA) with the aim of creating public awareness about
AYFST especially among the Nigerian youths. The groupused the opportunity to explain the vision, mission andobjectives of AYFST.
AYFST Nigeria also organised a public forum on“Examination Malpractice: A threat to Developmentof Science and Technology.” Another seminar was heldon the theme “The Challenges of Nsukka youths in thecontemporary society” under the auspices of 5-goldenstars in collaboration with ATPS Nigeria on December 27,
2007. The objectives of the workshop were:• To provoke the youth to find solutions totheir problems.
• To educate the youth on the essence ofinnovation on youth employment, poverty
reduction and wealth creation.
• To exchange ideas that will pave way for new
actions and collaborations.
• To provide a forum for youth and stakeholders
to exchange ideas on the challenges facing theyouth in Nigeria.
• To create opportunities for peer-peer
networking

22“There is a need to inspire the youth
to find solutions to their problems
and educate them on the essenceof innovation on youth employment,poverty reduction and wealthcreation.”AYFST In-Country Briefs

4.4

AYFST Sierra Leone

Most African countries areendowed with rich natural
resources but their improper
utilization and the omissionof science and technology fordevelopment has jeopardized
the continent’s potential for
economic growth. In June 2006, the African Youth Forumon Science and Technology (AYFST) was formally launched,with the motive of bringing the African youth into thecentre stage for participation in Africa’s development.
AYFST – Sierra Leone was formally launched on the April
7, 2007 following a two-day national youth workshop on
Science and Technology. The workshop was mainly designed
to build the capacity of the Sierra Leonean youth in Science& Technology, and break the chain of social exclusion of the
youth in policy decision-making for sustainable developmentin Sierra Leone. The central theme of the workshops was‘food security and health for sustainable development:
the Sierra Leone youth perspective’. The meeting also
served as a follow-up of the formal launching of the AYFSTin Accra Ghana, in June 2006.
The workshop was well attended bringing together
thirty youth drawn from various disciplines including
agriculturalists, medical practitioners, engineers,technologists and social scientists.

The role of youths in addressing food security and healthissues in Sierra Leone.
Youth empowerment through science and technology forsocio-economic development in Sierra Leone.
The role of science and technology, agriculture and health in
the educational system of Sierra Leone.

Among the key issues tackled during the workshop

The workshop was flavored by rich presentations fromvarious resource persons including officials of the ministryof Youths and Sports and the National Science andTechnology Council (NaSTeC) of Sierra Leone, as well
the AYFST Coordinator and National Chairman. Although
the ATPS country chairman was unavoidably absent, hegave his full backing to the workshop and its outcome.
The presentations served as a spring-board for the youth
participants to brainstorm and come up with suggestionsand viable recommendations for the country’s development.
According to the AYFST Chapter coordinator, Festus
Amadu, science, technology and human capital are closelyinterlinked for economic growth and development but
these linkages were not prominent in the Sierra Leone
context. During the workshop, the Director of Youths andSports acknowledged that the present youth policies in
Sierra Leone neglect the role of science and technology
and advised the AYFST- the Sierra Leone to advocate
for the integration of science and technology into thethen forthcoming renewed youth policies. Another issue
highlighted during the workshop is that science andtechnology must not only be promoted, but that the
supporting institutional structures and facilities should also
be provided in order to enhance capacity building, training
and research.
The Government of Sierra Leone should enact a Scienceand Technology Opportunities Act (STOA), which willencourage a culture of science and technology in the
country. There should be a strong national scientificresearch coordinating unit established in Sierra Leone.
Appropriate technology should be encouraged and adopted
in the agricultural, educational and health sectors for foodself-sufficiency and economic growth in the country.
Other recommendations made during the workshop
include an immediate integration of science and technology
policies in the national youth policies in Sierra Leone;
and young Sierra Leoneans should be involved in theformulation and implementation processes of such policies

As presented by Festus Amadu, Sierra Leone
AYFST National Chapter Coordinator

23

Shaping the Future of Science Technology and Innovation in Africa

No country today can boast of sustainable economic
development without a strong scientific base and a criticalmass of scientists and technologists.
There is an exclusion of the youth (in SL and most of
Africa) from mainstream macroeconomic policy formulationand implementation, which has relegated them (the youths)
to an oblivious position of indifference, thereby worsening
the underdeveloped state of the continent, and completely
dampening the prospects of sustainable development.
At the end of the workshop, participants produced acommuniqué addressing impediments, opportunities
and recommendations for effective application of S&T in
Sierra Leone’s development. The Communiqué was sharedwith stakeholders in government and the ATPS national
Secretariat for action to be initiated.
Following the formal launching of AYFST-SL, several moves
were made by the national executive to rally members of
the Sierra Leone government to adopt and incorporate the
AYFST vision into a national Programme for the benefit of
all Sierra Leonean youths. Consequently, there have beensome successes recorded so far. The Sierra Leone PRSP II
recognizes the role of youths in the development processof the country; therefore it has vital sections committed toyouth empowerment. This includes the Youth Employment
Scheme, which provides/caters for the provision of jobs tounemployed youths; and The Youth Agricultural Engagement
Scheme, which is intended to provide, among other things,
support for production centres for young people to receive
training in agricultural productivity for a specified period.
The ministry of Agriculture now has a Youth Coordination
Division. The Sierra Leonean Parliament now has about 25%
youthful population compared to previous years when it
had less than 5%.

Present Challenges• Resource constraints. This is a major factor, as
it dictates our level of operations, and limits
our activities to smaller scales. It goes without
saying that most government policies are notalways backed by action when it comes to the
disbursement of funds. This seems to be the24case in Sierra Leone.
• Low awareness and interest amongst theyouth populace concerning AYFST-SL and its
activities. There is a risk that some youth may
begin to see the AYFST as a another ‘talk shop’.
They see it as highly academic yielding very
little by way of financial rewards which seems
to be the major interest of youths today.
• Poor coordination between the AYFST-SL,
the ATPS Country Chapter, and the AYFST
Global Chapter. Time lapse in communication
between the global chapter and the country
chapter tends to dampen the spirit ofcommitted country chapter members.
• Lack of an improved ICT facility for thecountry chapter to help the chaptertransform itself from a passive to an active
and effective partner in national development.

Recommendations
AYFST and ATPS should actively be involved in the sourcing
of funds for national chapters, through the publishing ofquarterly bulletins which will detail the plans and financial
needs of national chapters.

An effective website for AYFST should be operationalised

National Chapters should be empowered to haveoperational websites which will effectively market theactivities of AYFST in their countries. This will help
raise youth and national awareness about AYFST in the
countries.
Proposals from AYFST national chapters should be funded
either partly or wholly from funding Agencies contacted
through ATPS.
ATPS/AYFST should have a Journal where research by
African youths whether funded directly by ATPS and/or its
donors, or from other sources, should be published. This
helps to promote the culture of research in S&T amongst
African youths.

AYFST In-Country Briefs

4.4 AYFST Ghana
Ghana, like most developing
nations, faces serious
developmental challenges
that could be met if thecountry’s enormous
potential was adequately
harnessed. Ghanaian
youth can also play a key role in this process by showing
a keen interest in the country’s political development,
developing a positive work ethic, demanding accountability
fully developing their capacities, defending the principles ofsustainability and adopting positive lifestyles.
This declaration was made during the African Youth Forumfor Science and Technology Ghana (AYFST-G) in-country
workshop under the theme “Health, the Key to Sustainable
Development-the Role of the Ghanaian Youth” , which washeld at the Faculty of Applied Sciences of the University for
Development Studies (UDS), Navrongo Campus from the
28 – 29 March, 2007. A communiqué was agreed upon andadopted which charted the course for youth involvement in
the developmental programmes and/or policies of Ghana.

Participants during the AYFST Ghana Youth Workshop on 28 and 29 March 2007

“Ghanaian youth have a unique roleto play in harnessing the country’s
enormous potential to tackle thedevelopmental challenges it faces.”

4.5 AYFST Lesotho
The AYFST Lesotho waslaunched by Einstein’s Mind
Lesotho on the 28 June 2007
with funding from the ATPS.
The launch event was heldat the NUL, ISAS Auditorium
with twenty five participantsin attendance including five eminent researchers from
Lesotho, and twenty students who included members ofEinstein’s Mind Lesotho. AYFST Lesotho is working towards
promoting the appreciation and awareness of scienceand technology among high school pupils. The chapter iscurrently collaborating with Lesotho National Commission
for UNESCO in the girls and science programme.

Ms. Makhetha, AYFST member from Maseru, Lesothopresents her girls and science project on Astronomy

Due to his delay in arrival, Phakamile Xingwana,
AYFST Lesotho was unable to make a presentation.
He however he submitted the above key points

AYFST Ghana, presented by
Okpara Ikenna Goodyear

25

Shaping the Future of Science Technology and Innovation in Africa

5.0 Revised Plan of Activities“Our shared vision; ‘empowered
African communities that enjoysustainable livelihoods’ is like ouratlas map, showing us the boundless
opportunities that exist and all thewonderful places we can go; the Planof Action is our compass, pointing us
towards the right direction”
Marsden Momanyi, Communications
and Outreach Officer, ATPS
The progress of implementation of the Plan of Action(2007 – 2010) was reviewed and recommendations madefor improvement; The plan was anchored under the ATPS
Phase VI Strategic Plan 2008 - 2012 and it was agreed that
the AYFST National Chapter activities must be guided by
AYFST’s vision, mission and objectives in the context ofagreed core areas of research and development in Africa.
The core areas for research and development in Africa
for the period 2009 to 2012 should be: Food Security andPoverty reduction, Health, and Environment. The following isa matrix showing the revised plan of activities by Strategic
Objective:

AYFST’s revised Plan of Action aims to expose young people in Africa to innovative
ways of thinking and open up new opportunities to enhance their scientific,
entrepreneurship and agricultural capacities.

26

Revised Plan of Activities

Targets/Indicators

Responsible Agent/
Person1.1.1

Training programmes through conferences,seminars, workshops

Membership of AYFST increased by 50%, 2,
Youth trained in Policy analysis, Leadership andEntrepreneurship, Action research skills andmethods etc

AYFST National Executive
Committees/AYFST Steeringcommittee

1.1.2

Information sharing

A functional website operationalized, Increased
number of country chapter members
interacting through the AYFST website.

AYFST Steering committee

2.1

Policy Advocacy

2.1.2

Review national policies in the areas of Food
security, Health and Environment and lobby
for necessary changes and implementation

Food Security, Health and Environmental
Policies reviewed and changes lobbied for.

AYFST National Executive
Committees

3.1

Creating an enabling environment for
research and innovation

3.1.1

Research competitions e.g. Innovation
Challenge awards.

Linkages established and functioning between
AYFST National Chapters and various Scienceand Technology oriented institutions

AYFST National Executive
Committees

3.1.2

Channel grants facilities for various action
research projects

Increased number of Research projects
implemented

AYFST National Executive
Committees

3.2

Induce behaviour and attitudinalchange towards ST&I

3.2.1

Facilitate information sharing throughconferences, workshops, seminars, etc.

Increased number of motivated young
scientists and professionals.

AYFST National Executive
Committees/AYFST Steering
Committee

4.1

Coordinating Action oriented research

4.1.1

Facilitate mentorship programmes

Increased number of youths mentored

AYFST National Executive
Committees

4.1.2

Facilitate the innovation incubator initiative

Increased Number of youth innovations
identified and supported

AYFST National Executive
Committees

4.1.3

Identify core areas for research anddevelopment that calls for youth action

Core areas of research and development
identified

AYFST Steering Committee

ID

Strategies/Activities

1.1

Human and Institutional Capacity
building

27

Shaping the Future of Science Technology and Innovation in Africa

6.0 Review of Deliberations
and Resolutions Made
6.1 AYFST Organisation andManagement
The ATPS believes that development will be driven by ageneration of youth who value their ideas and visions forthe future. We need ideas, not money, to be the engine
of development. It is the vision of ATPS for innovation to
become the norm among this community of youths. At its
core, the incentive structure of AYFST must be reflective ofour passion for innovation and curiosity about new ideas.
These, and not financial incentives, must motivate the youth
to membership in AYFST. Some motivational programmes
constructed by the AYFST must include information
sharing, science, technology and innovation training, career
mentorship, and dialogue.

Relationship with ATPS
Members discussed the feasibility of registering AYFST
Chapters in their respective countries thus allowing themto transact business legally when implementing various
in-country AYFST initiatives. The matter was debatedextensively; while a few participants rooted for autonomous
AYFST National Chapters through registration (as societies,
associations etc), the majority opted for mentorship of
the AYFST as a programme under the ATPS supervisedand supported by the ATPS National Chapters. There
was consensus over the need to tap into opportunities
that the ATPS avails through its Responsible ST&I Policy
Advisory Council, National Coordinator’s Regional Steering
Committee and the Board of Directors. Through its
established networks, the ATPS can afford the youth thecritical backing of established regional bodies such as the
ECOWAS, SADC, EAC, the AU and NEPAD among others.
Victor Emeka (AYFST Nigeria) urged fellow participants
to align with their respective ATPS Chapter Coordinators
who already enjoy legal status and have a mandate tooversee all of ATPS operations in their countries including
AYFST. Marsden Momanyi called on participants to avoid
reinventing the wheel and adopt the already existing
recognized structures under the ATPS country chapters.
He advised participants to work hand in hand with the

28

ATPS in their countries to receive guidance and mentorshipfrom senior and more experienced ATPS staff. He also
expressed concern that as part entities under the ATPS,
it was important for the AYFST to remain accountable to
the wider ATPS Network. He said that if at any given pointan AYFST chapter was found in breach of their respective
Government’s laws, then by proxy the ATPS would beheld liable. It is the therefore the prerogative of ATPS towork in close collaboration with AYFST in the interest of
maintaining its brand but more importantly to nurture thegrowth of the AYFST. He reminded participants that the
AYFST is one of the priority programmes of the ATPS Phase
VI Strategic Plan 2008 - 2012, and as a result, a significant
proportion (in some countries, the whole) of the funding
for the forthcoming AYFST programmes comes from the
ATPS through its donors. The funds he said have beenaccessed on the basis of an existing network of ATPS
country chapters with the requisite financial and technicalstructures to implement those programmes. The ATPS is
therefore accountable to them over the utilization of those
funds.
It was resolved that a transparent, responsible,
communicative AYFST national chapter should neverbe limited by a slow moving ATPS chapter. Over halfof the population of Africa is under the age of 18. The
AYFST believes that one of the principles behind
underdevelopment in Africa is the exclusion of an
educated and empowered youth. Youth are the engine forinnovation. In pursuit of the ATPS commitment to facilitate
opportunities for the youths in African development, it
believes that the AYFST programme must be directed by
the youth.

Sustaining strength
More harmful than funding restraints may be poor
communication between key AYFST members, including
the ATPS coordinator. This meeting marks an importantlaunching point for coordination and further planning.
If inactive for six months, a member of the steeringcommittee must be removed from that position having been
notified and warned at least two times.

7.0 Review of Communication
and Outreach Strategies
7.1 Review of the current
Websitefor members to opportunities such as apprenticeship,
internship and other hands-on capacity building activities.
Knowledge Sharing – efforts were made to create andsustains forums for sharing knowledge and information fromthe various sectors of government, business, education,
health, the environmental and others. Hopefully, the lessons
learned and best practices obtained will be exploitedfurther in the future. ATPS needs to expand the functionsof the website to make it more user-friendly.

During the period under review, The African Youth Forumon Science and Technology (AYFST) contracted LOG`EL
Project Ltd. to develop, design, construct, install and launcha web-site that would enable its members to communicate
to each other and to other partners of their interest. Thiswas mainly for the furtherance of identifying and tapping
opportunities that would see them exploit their talents,
abilities and potentials to the maximum while at the sametime, promoting sustainable development for themselves,
their families, communities, countries and the world atlarge. Consequently, the website was developed andoperationalized in line with the facets detailed hereunder

AYFST Website Achievements

Overall Objective

A number of achievements were registered following theoperationalization of the AYFST Web-site namely;

Overall, the AYFST website’s objective was to enable
AYFST members identify and tap their talents, abilities
and potentials in the fields of Science and Technology
undertakings.

7.2 Activities
In order to realize the overall objective stated above, AYFST
members and stakeholders utilized their website to conduct
a number of activities including:On-line Forum Tool set-up – a forum tool for online communication and interaction was established andaccordingly utilized. Regularly the ATPS administrationteam compiled and shared reports of what was discussed.
Research Work – generating information on the available
opportunities for young people in the fields of Science,
Technology, entrepreneurship and any other area ofoccupational value was done but not optimally; more efforts
are needed in this area.
Sourcing of web Networks – sourcing for web networks
in Africa and beyond that could be of interest in promoting
such varied talent(s) among AYFST members was carriedout. But more efforts are needed to provide access

Monitoring and Evaluation – on-line monitoring of the
AYFST website performance was done accordingly though
there is an urgent need to upscale this function• An on-line interaction forum tool wasdeveloped, designed operationalized andutilized.
• The Web-site was managed and monitored
and feed-back shared,• Topics such as; “Our vision for Africa – 2050:
African Youth have the Potential to Transform
African societies” were formulated, debated,discussed and resolved upon.
• The web-site was updated regularly.

AYFST Website Challenges
Despite these achievements several challenges were noted
including:•••

Not many AYFST members participated andcontributed towards the forum interactions asregularly as would be expected,
Certain limitations emerged in the
management of the website especially thelack of close-knit monitoring and support, toensure its optimum and effective performance,
The website was updated but not adequately

By Herbert Lwanga, AYFST, Uganda

29

Shaping the Future of Science Technology and Innovation in Africa•

so, to suite the current trends in a highly
dynamic information age; it was not regularly
updated. This was due to lack of the adequate
resources and information required to do thejob to the required capacity and in a timely
manner.
Generally, there was lack of adequate
resources to facilitate the smooth
operationalization and effective performanceof the website.

AYFST Website Methodology
The AYFST website was operationalized through anumber of methods which among others, included, on-line
planning meetings; on-line planning and review forums;
on-line information sharing, accessing information fromkey periodicals, visiting key job/occupational centres;
Monitoring and evaluation.

experiences and networking with other web-sites will beequally valuable. Adequate resources need to be madeavailable, for regular and frequent update of the web-site,
preferably once every two months in order to keep up withthe highly changing pace of new information delivery andsharing, during this HI-TECH era.
It is also recommended that translation of the forum
discussions into French be done, to involve more of ourFrancophone African youngsters. This activity is definitely
valuable but it needs to be budgeted for and resourced
adequately. Adequate resources should be budgeted for anddisbursed timely, to ensure the facilitation of a web-site thatserves AYFST members in a timely manner which is in stepwith the contemporary trends in technology, innovation andgeneral development processes. Finally, there is an urgent
need to improve the site monitoring process i.e. frequent(daily/weekly/monthly) sharing of web analytics between
parties concerned.

Targeted Beneficiaries
The project benefited all interested members of AYFST
across Africa especially those who had the zeal of enriching
their occupational potential. Technical support wasprovided on-line whenever it was requested.

7.3 Recommendations
Considerable efforts need to be directed towards
sensitizing and interesting more AYFST members andother youth in Africa to participate and contribute more
frequently, in the on-line forum interactions. Here three
things could help; Firstly there is need for a more attractive
and fairly advanced features and functions, second, as web
managers, we need to post to it with new and though
provoking topics of interest and, thirdly, we need to invite
the participants to propose which topics could be discussed
during the forum – to make them become owners as they
get involved in the forum discussions.
There is need for more research work to be done in orderto bring more user-friendly information to the website
which in turn will attract and retain more users. Sharing30

7.4 Key Resolutions

The website needs to be operationalized and enhanced toinclude modern features.

Having realized that International journals are virtuallyinaccessible to young people in Africa it was discussed andresolved that there is need for ATPS to intervene and makesure that international journals are accessible by the young
scientists and professionals through the ATPS/AYFST website.
Action:The African youths to identify key areas of interests and ATPS
to subscribe to journals in line with the interests of the youths

The youth in Africa should have their own journal of science,technology and innovation with the opportunities to peer
review and publish innovative ideas and empirical evidence.
Action: ATPS to take leadership in providing this resource

8.0 AYFST Membership andNational Chapters
Designating a reliable mechanism for absorbing newmembers is a priority in the plan of action. We must be
innovative in the ways we create interest in AYFST. Thismechanism must align with the values of AYFST. The
Millennium Development Goals defines ‘youth’ between
age 18 and 35. AYFST references this same definition inpursuit of its objective to build youth capacity in science,technology, and innovation for sustainable developmentin Africa. AYFST is committed to a ‘knowledge-based’
development of Africa, and it believes that harnessing theknowledge and ability of the youth is vital to this pursuit.
Knowledge for development is not just in universities,
libraries, and books. Knowledge exists beyond theseboundaries, with youths outside formal institutions foreducation. For that reason, while AYFST will be involved
with institutions of education, it must also reach youths
outside the academia. The membership criteria include:• Any scientist, professional and innovator
within the age limit of 18-35 qualifies to bea member of AYFST and are eligible to beelected into AYFST leadership positions if theymeet the requirements.
• Young scientists, professionals or innovators
who are Africans and have the passion anddrive to see Africa experiencing sustainablesocio-economic growth and development.
• The AYFST activities should extend beyond
academia, and NOT exclude young innovators
outside the university.
The AYFST National Executive Committees will work
closely with the ATPS National chapter coordinators in theircountries, to receive mentorship and access opportunities
for funding for youth activities in their countries.
The maximum term of office for AYFST committees at
National level shall be two (2) years and members could be
re-elected only once for another term if they are still within
the age limit of 18 to 33.
The AYFST National Chapter Coordinators shall be eligible
members of the Regional Steering Committee.

8.1 Constitution of the AYFST
country chapter committee:
Composition:• Members would preferably be drawn frommultidisciplinary backgrounds.
• The members should share the vision, mission
and values of AYFST.
• The membership preferably has regional andgender representation.
• The committee shall be composed of nine
members.
The designated responsibilities shall be as follows:• Chairperson• Co-chairperson• General secretary• Treasurer• Communication officer• Committee Members

Qualification:• The chairperson and the co-chairperson shallhave a minimum of first degree and at least
two years of leadership role from a recognizedinstitution.
• The general secretary shall have a minimumof ‘A’ level education, or its equivalent, from arecognized institution.
• The treasurer shall have a minimum of ‘A’ level
education, or its equivalent, in a recognizedinstitution.
• The communication officer shall havea minimum of ‘A’ level education, or its
equivalent, in a recognized institution.
• All steering committee members shall havea minimum of ‘A’ level education, or its
equivalent, in a recognized institution.
• All the above candidates should be of aminimum of 18 years.
31

Shaping the Future of Science Technology and Innovation in Africa

Terms of reference:
•
•
•
•
•
•

•
•

The chairperson shall oversee all the activitiesof the AYFST national chapter.
Shall report the country activity progress tothe steering committee.
Liaise with ATPS country chapter coordinator.
Liaise with donors to support national
programmes.
The co-chair shall assist the chairperson in
executing AYFST activities.
General Secretary shall be responsible intaking minutes for the meetings, prepare
reports and disseminate information to allcommittee members and the rest of thegroup members.
Treasurer shall be responsible for receiving
and taking care of any petty cash for thecountry chapter.
Communication officer shall liaise withchairperson and the rest of the committee
members and arrange meetings and invite thenecessary participants.

Election Mechanism••

32

To be decided by national chapters andsubject to the approval of the steeringcommittee.
The person sitting on the national steeringcommittee must be an AYFST country
coordinator/Executive Committee
chairperson or a designated representative.

9.0 Election of AYFSTSteering Committee:“Coming together is a beginning, andstaying together is progress, but only
when teams sweat together do theyfind success.”
John C. Maxwell
The election criteria for election of a steering committee
was discussed and the following are the resolutions reached:

The maximum term of office for AYFST committees atboth Regional and National levels shall be two (2) years andmembers could be re-elected only once for another term ifthey are still within the age limit of 18 to 33.
The AYFST shall have a steering committee which shall beanswerable to the ATPS Management structure. The AYFST
secretariat shall continue receiving support from ATPS andshall report to both AYFST Steering committee and the ATPSManagement.
The AYFST steering committee shall have regional and gender
representation. The regions were defined as follows: East Africa,
West Africa (Anglophone), Francophone, and Southern Africa.
The number of member countries to be represented in thesteering committee should be thirteen (13) of which Four(4) shall be from East Africa, Three (3) from West Africa(Anglophone), Three (3) from Francophone countries andThree (3) from Southern Africa.

Through an agreed democratic process the following
countries were elected to be members of the steeringcommittee:

Malawi (Chairperson), Sierra Leone(Co-Chairperson), Ghana, Nigeria,
Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Ethiopia,
Benin, Zambia, Lesotho, Cameroon
and Cote d’Ivoire.

9.1 Constitution of the AYFSTRegional Steering Committee
Composition:• Members would preferably be drawn frommultidisciplinary backgrounds.
• The members should share the vision, mission
and values of AYFST.
• The membership must have regional andgender representation.
• The membership will grow in accordance withthe growth of AYFST.
• The committee shall be composed of thirteen(13) initial members.

The designated responsibilities shallbe as follows:••••

ChairmanVice chairman
Secretary
Members

Qualification:• Should possess at least a first degree withexperience relevant to agriculture, science,technology, innovation, advocacy and policy
formulation for sustainable development.
• A steering committee member must be anational chapter coordinator of a country thathas been active for the past two years.

Tenure of Office:• Term of office shall be two years, and the term
may be renewed by election.
• Countries may hold seats for more than two
terms, but individuals may not.

33

Shaping the Future of Science Technology and Innovation in Africa

Terms of Reference:
•
•
•
•
•
•

Coordinate AYFST activities.
Encourage a standard of quality regarding
submissions.
Report the affairs of AYFST to ATPS
coordinator semi-annually.
Shall collaborate with ATPS coordinator in
making sure there is a good relationshipbetween AYFST and ATPS national chapters.
Shall meet at least once in a year to deliberate
on annual congress themes and other related
matters
Shall guide incoming steering committee
members in their duties.

9.2 Newly elected Steering
Committee
Leadership:

1

2

Election mechanisms:••••

Countries, not individuals, will be nominatedfor steering committee membership.
One vote is given for any member country
that has been active for the past two years.
Regional representation on the steeringcommittee will be determined based on aregion’s relative percent membership in AYFST.
The chairperson, vice chairperson and thesecretary shall be elected by members of thesteering committee.

3

4

5

6

1. Marsden Momanyi - AYFST Coordinator

2.Tennyson Magombo - AYFST Chairperson: Malawi

3. Festus Amadu - AYFST Vice Chairperson: Sierra Leone

4. Phina Magara - AYFST Secretary Kenya

5. Okpara Ikenna Goodyear - AYFST Steering Committee; Ghana

6. Emeka Victor Ngwoke - AYFST Steering Committee; Nigeria

34

Election of AYFST Steering Committee

7. Jifar Tarekegn Nata - AYFST Steering Committee; Ethiopia

8. Esther Isaka - AYFST Steering Committee;Tanzania

9. Mireille Pélagie Akouavi Houensou - AYFST Steering

78Committee; Benin

10. Phakamile Xingwana - AYFST Steering Committee;
Lesotho

11. Winnie Alum: AYFST Steering Committee (Ex-Officio
Member); Uganda

12. Maurice Bolo: AYFST Steering Committee (Ex-Officio

“

9

10

11

12

There’s always something
new from Africa
Pliny the Elder (23-79 AD)

Member and former Coordinator of AYFST), Kenya

Y
”

N
A
IC
35

Shaping the Future of Science Technology and Innovation in Africa

10.0 Launch of The Youth Innovation
Challenge Programme - Y I CAN

Africa’s youths met in Mombasa,
Kenya to map the future of
Science Technology and Innovationin the continent through the
new innovation programmeTraveling from East, West, South, and Francophone
Africa, country representatives, steering committee
members and advisors of the African Youth Forum for
Science and Technology (AYFST) converged in Kenya’s port
city of Mombasa to seek ways to strengthen and deepen
their collective influence through the AYFST.
The forum founded in 2005, held its fourth annual Steering
Committee Meeting from 13th to 14th July, 2009 and was
followed by the launch of the Youth Innovation Challenge
Programme (Y I CAN). The Y I CAN ‘read as “Why I
Can” has been developed under the auspices of the ATPS
Phase VI Strategic Plan, 2008 – 2012. The programme isdesigned to build a culture of innovation amongst young
people in Africa by promoting innovation through targeted
partnerships within the quadruple helix (Researchers,

36

Private Sector Actors, Policy Makers
and Civil Society) and throughentrepreneurship incubation
programmes. The AYFST is amongst
the priority programmes of theAfrican Technology Policy Studies(ATPS) Phase VI Strategic Plan,
2008 - 2012. The meeting tookstock of AYFST progress to inform
its implementation of planned
youth activities under the Phase
VI Plan 2008 - 2012. The meeting
resolved that AYFST National
Chapter Committees would work
closely with the ATPS National
chapter coordinators in theircountries, to receive mentorshipand access opportunities forfunding for youth activities in their countries. It wasalso agreed that they shall be answerable to the ATPSManagement structure and shall report to both the
AYFST Steering committee and the ATPS Management.
The meeting saw the consolidation of the membershipof the AYFST Steering Committee and the election ofits leadership. Through an agreed democratic process
the following countries were elected to be membersof the steering committee: Malawi, Sierra Leone, Ghana,
Nigeria, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Benin, Zambia,
Lesotho, Cameroon and Cote d’Ivoire. Tennyson
Magombo (Malawi) was elected AYFST Chairperson

Y

N
A
IC

Launch of the Youth Innovation Challenge Programmeand Festus Amadu (Sierra Leone) its vice chair. Phina
Magara from Kenya was elected as the secretary.
The meeting also called for a reliable mechanism forabsorbing new members emphasizing the need to beinnovative in the ways it creates and sustains young
people’s interest in AYFST. At the same time the AYFST
reaffirmed its dream of having ‘knowledge-based’
development in Africa, and its belief that harnessing theknowledge and ability of the youth is vital to this pursuit.
Speaking to the youths’ during an open session, Dr. Kevin
Urama, the Executive Director of the African Technology
Policy Studies Network (ATPS) asserted that “Knowledge
for development is not just in universities, libraries, andbooks. Knowledge exists beyond these boundaries, withyouths outside formal institutions for education.” He calledon the AYFST leadership in its work with formal education
institutions to strive to reach youths outside the academia.
He added that the ATPS believes that development
will be driven by a generation of youth that value theirideas and visions for the future. “We need ideas as theengine of development,” said Dr. Urama. Furthermore
he challenged the young people to think outside the box
and dared them to dream big, because true innovators
dare to dream. “If your dream does not scare you,then it is probably not good enough,” he added.
The meeting reaffirmed the vision of AYFST
for Africa, “empowered African communities
that enjoy sustainable livelihoods.”
The youth further expressed their dream of living in acontinent where innovation is the norm. “We dream of an
AYFST which is reflective of our passion for innovationand curiosity about new ideas, said Mr. Tennyson
Magombo the newly elected Chair person of AYFST
during his maiden speech to participants. The meeting
also called for an expansion of its website functions toinclude membership recruitment and e-learning activities.
Additionally, plans began for the annual Youth Congress.
The AYFST expressed a mission to showcase AYFST
outreach and capacity building programmes as well as
the skills and inspiration they engender among youth. It
was noted that the AYFST’s country chapters operate invery different contexts, and the youth were drawn fromvarious disciplines in agriculture, science and technology.
Despite this eclectic range of backgrounds, the common,
guiding vision of the AYFST – to participate in educational
reform, policy advocacy, and youth empowerment in orderto facilitate capacity building among African youths inareas of science and technology – proved that they havemore in common than apart. Commitment to this vision
propelled a fruitful week of dialogue and agreement.
ATPS would like to congratulate these young
people for their commitment in seeing througha week of action and accomplishment and would
like to assure them of its continued support“If your dreams do not scare you,they are simply not good enough...”Anonymous

10.1 Creating an Innovation insystem in Africa
Interview with Bright Simons, renowned YouthInnovator
Q: What brings you to Mombasa, Kenya?
A: I am here to take part in the launch of the YouthInnovation Challenge Programme (Y I CAN) but more
importantly I am here at the behest of my conviction that
Science, Technology and Innovation are way out of Africa’s
problems. I along with a few other young people who are
independent innovators in their own right came here at
the invitation of the ATPS to share experiences acrossborders in Africa. It is my belief that innovation knows nofrontiers which is why we promote shared learning acrossthe continent. I believe the Y I CAN is a noble idea whichaims to ensure that ST&I is mainstreamed into African
Development.
Q: What would you say is needed to build a cultureof innovation in Africa?

37

Shaping the Future of Science Technology and Innovation in Africa

Bright Simons, Innovator of
MPedigree (a technology that uses
mobile phones in the fight against
counterfeit drugs), addresses youths
during the Launch

A: So many things need to be done concurrently and at
the same pace to build a culture of innovation in Africa but
fundamental to all of them is the need to develop a mindset that is both reactive to innovation, but more importantly
is proactive in using innovation to spur development. The
problem is that the ordinary people in Africa do not realizethat innovation is tied directly to development and until
they do, they will not be able to amass the political capitaland social capital and the cultural dynamism that is requiredin order to achieve the needed results. There has to beclear notion that innovation is directly tied to development
outcomes so that the people at the grassroots can feel theimpacts of innovation directly in their lives. Without thatmind-set change, innovation will continue to be confined toa small elite and we are not going to go far.

There are too many people who take medicines notknowing if these medicines will cure them or kill them, itis that bad. In my part of the world you have one in threechance of swallowing something that can send you to yourgrave which is tragic. At mPedigree, we have given thema tool, a technology that allows them to use their mobile
phones to verify every time they buy medicine, whether
what they’re buying is authentic.

Q:Talk us through any one innovation that you havesuccessfully championed

A: The biggest obstacle I see is the lack of awareness about
the direct correlation between innovation and development
which is so vital. If you don’t provide the linkages between
what we do in the ST&I arena and the daily lives of people,
we are going to lose the connection were not going to
see the mind-set emerge that will ensure that we mobilise
the political capital to make the transformations neededin Africa. This includes the big things like increasing thefunding for tertiary research, equipping laboratories and so

A: Through the mPedigree project which I started in Ghana
we are showing how technological innovation can savepeople’s lives by making it possible for consumers, patientsand ordinary people to find out if the medicines that they
have just bought from a pharmacy are genuine and safe.
About 30 per cent of all medicines sold in many parts ofAfrica are counterfeit and thus ineffective and dangerous.

38

If people can understand that technology can help them tocertify that the medicines they are about to take are theright ones, then they will begin to see a direct correlation
between innovation and development.
Q: What would you say is the biggest obstacle tobuilding a culture of innovation in Africa?

Launch of the Youth Innovation Challenge Programme

on. But that political mobilisation must come from certain
grassroots awareness that innovation directly impacts ourlives.
Q: What would you say is the biggest obstacle facing
young innovators in Africa?
A: The major obstacle we face as young innovators is thelack of political will, there are vested interests bent on
obstructing progress and new ideas. Ordinarily you would
expect that every innovation will encounter obstacles but
for young people in Africa, it is particularly pronounced
because they often lack the power to counter these forces.
We are talking about young people with meager financial
resources and often without all the skills they require trying
to change a status quo that has developed over several
years and for which there are several vested interests inmaintaining that status quo. That is why it is important tohave direct correlation between innovation and the daily
lives of ordinary people in Africa so that we can collectively
amass the political capital needed to surmount theseobstacles. For that change to happen, it requires a modicumof political and social mobilization, a cunning ability to reelin allies, to develop and strengthen alliances and thosepartnerships cannot occur if they are not empowered bythose who are already enlightened.
Q: What words of advice do you have for any young
innovators out there?
A: The first thing you’ve got take into mind as a young
innovator in Africa is that it’s not going to be easy. The
complex dynamics that have put this continent in this“Victor Hugo, a French philosopher
said; There’s nothing more powerfulthan an idea whose time has come.
The youth innovation challenge
programme is an idea whose time
has come,”

quagmire of poverty has evolved over centuries. Any
attempt to change it will be met with stiff resistanceby those who have an interest in maintaining things theway they are, so you have to be politically conscious
and understand the impact of your innovation. If it isrevolutionary you have to find ways of overturning thesevested interests.You have to be culturally aware because notevery innovation is suited either due to factors such as timeand place. Above all else you have to be socially savvy andknow where you can build alliances and places where you
can develop partnerships.You then have to use every means
to leverage those partnerships to overturn the vested
interests that exit and are embedded in the status quo. If
you have these three dynamics in play for you, then you canbegin to effect change.
Make sure that the grassroots are in touch with yourparticular perspective, and the way to achieve this isby being in touch with the grassroots.You have to lookcritically at society and see what it is you are changing, see
the dynamics in play. What are the forces which have vested
interests in your particular situation? How will they react?
Is there a way that you can change their opposition to somekind mutual benefit? You may come across some instanceswhere people have vested interest in a certain situation
due to their ignorance. They think that the current situation
favors them when in fact it doesn’t.
Q: What would you say, is the role of Y I CAN in
creating an Innovation in system in Africa?
A: The youth innovation challenge programme is an idea
whose time has come,Victor Hugo, a French philosopher
once said, “There’s nothing more powerful than an idea
whose time has come.” To create an award scheme which
recognizes and celebrates youth innovation, allows youth torally together around the recognition they can garner frominnovating. It ensures that at least, people are listening tothem and therefore people can be convinced to contributein some way to enabling further innovation to take place.
It ensures the policy makers, industrialists, research
institutions; civil society and private sector actors know
how they can support these particular young innovators

39

Shaping the Future of Science Technology and Innovation in Africa

and entrepreneurs. The ability to highlight a particularinnovators work and put them in the spotlight opens up achannel of communication. The public then hear about it,celebrate it, and hopefully, are then compelled to support it.
So above all the other great aspects of this programme isthe fact that it ensures support for young innovators which
can then feed directly into the task that they are faced within changing the status quo, in overturning vested interests.
The Y I CAN programme is one of the most extraordinarythat we have seen in Africa in a very long time, it
understands the fact that you cannot localize or isolateinnovation and that innovation thrives in an ecosystem.You
therefore have to ensure that the various elements of theecosystem are in harmony, so the culture is important, thesocial factors and the politics of the situation are equallyimportant.
The ATPS has developed one of the few comprehensive
programmes looking at how for instance policy dialogue andpractice is tied to youth culture and how youth culture istied to political outcomes. This comprehensive approach willdefinitely broaden the horizon of all those who participate
in the Y I CAN programme and make them among themost formidable advocates and proponents of change thiscontinent has ever seen.

10.2 Key Speakers and an
Overview of their Presentations
The event featured a mix of key youth speakers drawn fromdiverse disciplines in agriculture, science and technology
who have excelled in their respective fields of expertise.
They delivered presentations which inspired the young
people present to work on turning brilliant ideas into
tangible technologies or innovations for addressing
explicit challenges Africa. They presented the obstacles
they encountered when transforming their innovations
into practice offering the participants a chance to learn
from their mistakes and find practical solutions on how tosurmount the challenges. In describing the power of learningfrom the experience of others, Dr. Urama quoted a famous

40“The Y I CAN programme is oneof the most extraordinary that wehave seen in Africa in a very longtime, it recognizes the fact that you
cannot localize or isolate innovationand that innovation thrives in an
ecosystem.You therefore have toensure that the various elements ofthe ecosystem are in harmony”
Nigerian saying “The one who starts cooking first has themost broken pots.”

Stingless Bees; Impact on Forest
Conservation and Income
Generation
By Joseph Macharia

Joseph Macharia works at BIOTA East Africa where heis implementing a project on stingless bees and rural
livelihood in the community around Kakamega forest. This
project extends from Joseph’s experience and publishedworks focused on the nexus between entomology, poverty
alleviation, and sustainable development. Joseph recently
received a Master of Science in Zoology from Jomo
Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology where hehas also been a lecturer.

Overview of presentation:
The poor often have little option but to use theenvironment in non-sustainable ways for their everyday
survival. A degraded environment cannot sustain continued
use of its natural resources and hence cannot sustain foodproduction, wild animals or natural pollinators. It is against
this background that the stingless bee project was initiatedin Kenya, to seek alternative strategies to develop linkages

Launch of the Youth Innovation Challenge Programme

natural flora in the forest for their survival. Hence,
they are vulnerable to deforestation and habitat
fragmentation as these processes diminish nesting-sites
and food plants.
Not much attention has been given to these threatened
and valuable bees. Furthermore, little knowledge exists
on their biology, behavior and domestication in mostparts of Africa. The objective of this project was toinitiate stingless beekeeping by documenting the folk
knowledge, analysing their honey to set standards andtest the antibacterial activity of stingless bee’s honey.

Joseph Macharia

between diversity of resources and sustainable livelihood
through income generation options.
Meliponiculture, the name given to stingless bee keeping,is a practical activity that can be integrated into forestry,horticulture and contribute to the increase of the
agricultural production and regeneration of naturalvegetation through pollination. Deforestation and poor
management are the main problems faced by this incipient
industry. In Africa, stingless bee honey is mostly obtainedby harvesting from feral colonies, an activity which kills or
destroys the colonies.
Replacing destructive harvesting of stingless bees with welldesigned management practices would provide honey for
food, income, medicine, and enhance pollination of bothcommercial and indigenous plants. The development of
meliponiculture provides new opportunities for people in
the rural areas as a source of income and can improve theeconomics of many households though income from saleof the highly valued honey and increased food production
through pollination services.
Pollination services from these bees increases the
agricultural production especially of horticultural crops
and regeneration of natural vegetations. Stingless bees
nest in tree hollows/cavities for their natural reproduction
and colony growth and are dependent on older trees andHoney from stingless bees is highly valued for its
medicinal value. The local community in Kenya also
shared the same belief. This also corresponds with myfindings on the antibacterial effect of stingless bee’s
honey.

Intellectual Property Rights Challenges and opportunities foryouth in translating innovations into
practice:
By Isaac Rutenberg

Isaac Michael Rutenberg is a patent agent in Palo Alto,
California. He has a PhD in Maths and Chemistry, both hasa special interest in IPR and is involved in both the practiceand study of patent law. In addition to his role as an agent/
representative for over 20 U.S. patents, has done a lot ofimportant work in the developing world looking at therelationship between intellectual property laws, foreign
investment, and innovation.

Overview of presentation:
Intellectual Property is a central topic in wide arrayof interests including business managers, scientists, staff,
university professors, students, researchers, entrepreneurs
and inventors. It is an important aspect to consider whendeveloping an innovation and commercializing it but thebiggest challenge in Africa remains the lack of awarenesson IPR. Intellectual Property can be defined as ideas,
information, art, inventions, designs, and expressions of41

Shaping the Future of Science Technology and Innovation in Africa

Isaac Michael Rutenberg

creativity. Furthermore, these are legal rights that are used
to control who uses IP. The common forms of protection
include Patents, Trademarks and Copyrights.
There are four main types of Patents are: 1. Utility Patents;
these includes methods, machines, and compounds. 2.
Design Patents; These are Designs with no functionality. 3.
Plant Patents 4. Utility Model Certificate (Kenya).

Patents:
The first requirement in registering an idea, information, art,
invention, design, or any expressions of creativity as a Utility
Patent include is Novelty. This means that it has to be new
and original (non-obvious) and must be accompanied with afull disclosure (written specification). This patent lasts about
20 years from filing and allows the public to see exactly
what you are doing, generally speaking it allows for further
innovation.
Patents can be issued at Country level through patentoffices in line with a countries laws and enforcement. They
can also be registered with regional organisations such as
the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization(ARIPO) or the Organisation Africaine de la PropriétéIntellectuelle (OAPI). They are also bound by International
treaties such as the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT). The
most used office is the United States Patent and Trademark
Office (USPTO). The USPTO which is an Agency Of The
United States Department of Commerce has registered up

42

The Wright Brothers patent of the air plane
wing dubbed the “Flying Machine”

Arguably the most famous trademarks.

to 7.5 million patents. Others which register a large numberof patents are the European Patent Office (EPO) and theJapan Patent Office (JPO).

Launch of the Youth Innovation Challenge Programme

Trademarks:
A trademark is a type of intellectual property, andtypically a name, word, phrase, logo, symbol, design, image,or a combination of these elements. Identified by thesymbols ™ (not yet registered) and ® (registered), a
trademark is a distinctive sign or indicator used by anindividual, business organisation or other legal entity toidentify that the products and/or services to consumers
with which the trademark appears. The owner of aregistered trademark may commence legal proceedings
for trademark infringement to prevent unauthorized useof that trademark. However, registration is not required.
The owner of a common law trademark may also file suit,
but an unregistered mark may be protected only within
the geographical area within which it has been used orin geographical areas into which it may be reasonably
expected to expand. Requirements include application
to trademark offices by the first user and its duration isindefinite if maintained.

Copy Rights:
Copyright gives the author of an original work exclusive
right for a certain time period in relation to that work,
including its publication, distribution and adaptation, after
which time the work is said to enter the public domain.
Copyright applies to any expressible form of an idea orinformation that is substantive and discrete and fixed in a
medium. Some jurisdictions also recognize “moral rights” of
the creator of a work, such as the right to be credited forthe work. Copyright is described under the umbrella term
intellectual property along with patents and trademarks.

World Economic Forum’s Technology Pioneer Community
at Davos. Bright, a TED and Ashoka Fellow, is a memberof the Evian Group, and an active member of otherdevelopment-focused societies in Africa and elsewhere,
including the Global Agenda Council on the Future of
Mobile Communications of the World Economic Forum. He
is a recipient of numerous awards, ranging from Marie Curie
and Commonwealth Vision Grants in migration studies andsocial videography to a PPARC Scholarship in Gamma Ray
Astronomy.

Overview of presentation:
Counterfeiting costs Pharmaceutical companies anestimated $50 billion in lost revenues. Worse than that, it
creates untold suffering for millions around the world. In
1995, 50,000 infants in Niger were inoculated with fakemeningitis vaccine leading to thousands of fatalities. Indeed,
the World Health Organization estimates that in many
places in Africa, India and parts of South-East Asia, up to athird of medicines are compromised.
A recent study in East Asia discovered that 50% ofartesunate (an anti-malarial) holograms have beensuccessfully faked. Regardless how complex a hologram is
made to look, all the counterfeiter needs to do is produce
something passably like it, and consumers wouldn’t know
any better. Through the mPedigree project which Bright

MPedigree technology:
By Bright Simons

Bright B. Simons is the Director of Development Research
at IMANI, and the Coordinator of the mPedigree
Network. He performs a range of functions for IMANI
related to social marketing, research and coordinating
alliances. These duties have involved speaking engagements
around the world and led to numerous quotations in theinternational press, ranging from opinions in the Asian
Times to appearances on the BBC. In 2009, he joined themPedigree technology used for verifying authenticity of drugs.

started in Ghana consumers, patients and ordinary people
can now find out if the medicines that they have just boughtfrom a pharmacy are genuine and safe.

43

Shaping the Future of Science Technology and Innovation in Africa

They have developed a simple Pharmaceutical Quality
Grid placed on medicine packaging, similar to the recharge
mobile talk time cards used in many African countries.
Above the many benefits that come with the technology,
it allows them to use their mobile phones to verify every
time they buy medicine, whether what they’re buying isauthentic. Consumers will be able to check whether achemical seller or pharmacy is in good standing with the
Authorities over the internet or by sending a text message

44

to a special shortcode (easily memorized 4-digit mobile
number). Consumers also will be able to check if a productis duly registered and authorized for sale in Participating
countries and report adverse reactions and othercomplaints by calling a shortcode or by sending, in a text
message, the registration number along with a pre-defined
tag to a special shortcode. This will have a big impact on thefight against malaria given the extreme prevalence of fakeanti-malarials, and the exceptional contribution of malaria toparticipating countries’ health burden.

11.0 Conclusion
On the whole the meeting was a success in achieving its
objectives. The AYFST delegates successfully reviewed
progress made in the implementation of the PoA (2007 –2010) and developed several strategies for improvement.
They revised the activities slated for 2009 – 2010 in linewith the ATPS phase VI strategy and youth capacity building
initiatives and incorporated the new ATPS Youth Innovation
Challenge Programme as the AYFST flagship initiative. The
team further reviewed AYFST communication and outreachstrategies, including revamping its website and came up
with concrete strategies on how to increase and sustain its
membership. Lastly the delegates successfully consolidated
the AYFST leadership structure and elected its steeringcommittee.
Speaking to the youths’ during an open session, Dr. Kevin
Urama, the Executive Director of the African Technology
Policy Studies Network (ATPS) asserted that “knowledge
for development is not just found in universities, libraries,
and books. Knowledge exists beyond these boundaries, withyouths outside formal institutions of education.” He calledon the AYFST leadership in its work with formal education

institutions to strive to reach youths outside the academia.
“Innovation does not occur in the mainstream,” he said.
He added that the ATPS believes that development will be
driven by a generation of youth that value their ideas andvisions for the future. “We need ideas and visionaries as theengine of development, not skeptics or conservatives,” said
Dr. Urama. Furthermore he challenged the young people tothink outside the box and dared them to dream big, sayingthat true innovators dare to dream. “If your dream does notscare you, then it is probably not good enough,” he added.
In closing the workshop, Dr. Urama advised the youths
to go back to their respective stations thinking about the
obstacles they face as stepping stones and the threats asopportunities. “You must align your thinking to ‘Why I Can’,and away from ‘Why I Can’t.’ Be the change that brings the
new African Renaissance through science, technology andinnovation. This is the spirit and the essence of the Y I CAN
programme, to create a crop of African youths who believethat they can change Africa. The only people who can truly
cause the change that we need for Africa’s renaissance is the
youth,” he told them.
Diagram used by Dr. Urama to illustrate
the demographic chasm of innovation
Moore, G. A. (1991) Crossing the
Chasm, Harper Business, New York45

Shaping the Future of Science Technology and Innovation in Africa

Annex 1: Consolidated
Participants List:
1

2

Ms. Mireille Pélagie Akouavi Houensou
Agro-Nutritionniste, Chargée du Suivi-évaluation
et de l’Appui aux Activités Génératrices de Revenus des Ménages
Ruraux
CEBEDES-Xudodo
02 BP 778 Cotonou
Bénin
Tel: (229) 97882262 / 95443952(229) 21304139
Email: pemihou@yahoo.com,
mireilhouensou@gmail.com
Mr. Jifar Tarekegn NataInternational Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI)
Bole Subcity, Kebele 02
P.O. Box 14129
Addis Ababa
Ethiopia
Tel: (251) 911 601 022 (Mobile)(251) 116 172 516 (Office)
Email: j.tarekegn@cgiar.org
jifar_t@yahoo.com

3

Mr. Okpara Ikenna Goodyear
C/o Dr. Oppong Dwapanyin
CRIG, New Tafo
Ghana
Tel: (233) 54 2579776
Email: pharmpersevere@yahoo.com

4

Ms. Mariam Marimax Addo
Residence: H/No 5,
30th street Dansoman Estate
P.O. Box MP 2461, Mamprobi
Accra
Ghana
Tel: (233) 208 160 524
Email: addo_mariam@yahoo.com

5

Ms. Phina Victoria Magara
P.O. Box 54139 – 00200
NairobiKenya
Tel: (254) (0) 724 664 752 / 735343511
phinamagara@yahoo.co.uk

6

Mr. Phakamile Xingwana
P.O. Box 8353 Khubetsoana, 106
LesothoTel: (266) 58007038
Email: pxingwana@yahoo.com
Website: www.einsteinsmindlesotho.s5.com

7

Mr. George Kanthiti
Ministry of Industry and Trade
PO Box 30366
Lilongwe 3
MalawiTel: (265) (0) 888 535 534(265) 08 535 534
Email: gkanthiti@yahoo.co.uk

46

8

Mr. Emeka Victor Ngwoke (AYFST Coordinator, Nigeria)
Department of Electrical Engineering
University of Nigeria, Nsukka
Enugu State
Nigeria
Tel: (234) 8030982612
Email: emvictoruk@yahoo.co.uk

9

Mr. Festus Amadu (Executive member of AYFST, Sierra Leone
chapter)
Lecturer in Agricultural Economics
Njala University
47B Upper Bendebu, Marjay Town, Freetown
Sierra Leone
Tel: (232) 76635896 / 33 713587 / 77561019
Email: famadu2002@yahoo.com
Festusamadu01@yahoo.co.uk

10

Mr. Ambrose T. Rogers
Department of Linguistics
K- 30, Fourah Bay College
University of Sierra Leone
Mount Aureol
Freetown
Sierra Leone
Tel: (232) 33 324 217, 78324217
Email: artiamie@yahoo.co.uk

11

Ms. Esther Joseph Isaka
P.O. Box 75027
Dar es Salaam
Tanzania
Tel: (255) 755 570 709
Fax: (255) (0) 22 2775760
Email: atps@daima.co.tz
ejisaac2000@yahoo.com

12

Mr. Herbert Lwanga
C/O LOG`EL PROJECT
P.O. Box 71700
KampalaUgandaTel: (256) 712 378 101
Email: Herbert@logelproject.org

13

Ms. Winnie Alum
P.O. Box 1434
KampalaUgandaTel: (256) 772 463 831
Email: Winnie_alum@yahoo.co.uk

14

Mr.Tennyson Magombo
University of Malawi,
Bunda College of Agriculture
P.O. Box 219
or P.O. Box 30351
Lilongwe 3
MalawiTel: (265) 999 378 655
Email: tennysonmagombo@yahoo.co.uk

Annex1: Consolidated Participants List

15

Mr. John Wanjala Makokha
P.O. Box 622-00605
NairobiKenya
Tel: (254) (0) 721 825 520
Email: johnnet2003ke@yahoo.com

22

Marsden Momanyi
African Technology Policy Studies Network
P.O. Box 10081 – 00100
NairobiKenya
Tel: (254) (20) 2714092
Email: mmomanyi@atpsnet.org

16

Mr. Mutisungilire Kachulu
National Commission for Science and Technology,
P/BAG B303,
Lilongwe,
MalawiTel: (265) 999 357 110
Email: mutiekachulu@gmail.com

23

William Firestone
African Technology Policy Studies Network
P.O. Box 10081 – 00100
NairobiKenya
Tel: (254) (20) 2714092
Email: wfirestone@atpsnet.org

17

Mrs. Wanjiru Nyaguthii Kamau-Rutenberg
2317 Casa Bona Ave, Belmont, CA, 94002
United States
Tel: (650)793-8388
Email: wanjiru@usfca.edu
wanjirukr@gmail.com

18

Mr. Bright Augustine Simons
231 Bari House, Off La Paz Road,
Flagtop Junction, Achimota,
Accra
Ghana
Email: baronsimons@yahoo.co.uk
bbsimons@mpedigree.net
Website: www.mpedigree.net

19

Mr. Joseph Macharia
P. O. Box 62000-00200, Nairobi,
Kenya
Tel: (254) (0) 722506114
Email: jmacharia86@gmail.com

20

Mr. Isaac Rutenberg
2317 Casa Bona Ave.,
Belmont, California 94002,
United States
Tel: 650-793-3255(Cell) / 650-592-2535 (Home)
Tel: (254) (0) 0711861900
Email: IMRutenberg@mintz.com

21

Mr. Harinjaka Andriankoto Ratozamana
P.O. Box 3866, Antananarivo 101
Madagascar
Tel: (261) (0) 325 140 133
Email: harinjaka@gmail.com
adriankoto@megaseeds.net
Website: www.megaseeds.net

47

Shaping the Future of Science Technology and Innovation in Africa

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48

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49

The African Technology Policy Studies Network (ATPS) isa multidisciplinary network of researchers, private sector
actors and policy makers promoting the generation,dissemination, use and mastery of science, technology andinnovation (ST&I) for African development, environmental
sustainability and global inclusion. ATPS intends toachieve its mandate through research, capacity building
and training, science communication/dissemination andsensitization, participatory multi-stakeholder dialogue,knowledge brokerage, and policy advocacy.

African Technology Policy
Studies Network
The Chancery, 3rd Floor,Valley Road
P.O. Box 10081-00100
Nairobi, Kenya
Tel: +254-20-271 4098/ 168/ 498
Fax: +254-20-271 4028
Website: www.atpsnet.org
Email: info@atpsnet.org
Skype address: atpsnet