No serious attempts were made to link industrial demand to the research conducted in Chinese higher education institutions. As a result the technologies produced by these institutions were under-utilised, and there were no economic incentives to transfer these technologies to their consumers. Institutional compartmentalism therefore actually blocked the dissemination of technological information. Nothing prevents African countries from establishing institutions similar to the CPRE, both nationally and continentally. In fact, some transfers of technology can do more harm than good.
Technology needs to be appropriate to the context into which it is transferred.
Appropriate technological application is dependent upon a multitude of factors. Firstly, the recipient country should be able to absorb the technology. To do so, it would need sufficient and appropriate technicians, scientists and engineers to 'indigenise' the new knowledge, in other words, to adapt and apply new or acquired technology to local needs and conditions. Secondly, national sovereignty needs to be prioritised. In this regard, technology suppliers such as multinational corporations might only donate or sell technologies in order to gain a foot in new markets or to monopolise economic sectors.