Bitrina Diyamett of STIPRO revisits Africa’s STI policies at the 2017 UN STI Forum
Effective STI strategy and technology capacity building is the only pathway towards sustainable development – said SV’s network member, Bitrina Diyamett, at this year’s Multi-stakeholder Forum on Science, Technology and Innovation for the Sustainable Development Goals (STI Forum), New York.
Diyamett, who is also Executive Director at the Science, Technology and Innovation Policy Research Organization (STIPRO) in Tanzania, made these remarks at the fifth session of the Forum, which took place on 16 May 2017 at the UN headquarters. The other speakers include Prof. Geoffrey S. Boulton, President, CODATA and Prof. James Querry, Philadelphia University, ICGC.
Diyamett revisited the existing STI policies in Africa and offered her perspectives on how to fill the gaps, as outlined below.
- In Africa, efforts for strengthening and mainstreaming STI into the national development planning and implementation processes are already in place.
- However, poor governance of the STI system, ambiguities in policies and systemic issues are hindering poverty alleviation.
- Capacity building and research in STI policies, a strong private sector and responsible trade and investment policies are the solution.
The STI Forum was created in 2016 as a component of the Technology Facilitation Mechanism (TFM), which was mandated by the 2030 Agenda and Addis Ababa Action Agenda and considered as a means of implementation for the SDGs. The Forum was held for the second time this year – deliberating on the theme “Science, Technology and Innovation for a Changing World – Focus on SDGs 1, 2, 3, 5, 9 and 14”.
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