ECOWAS Policy on Science and Technology: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 11:00, 27 July 2017

Revision as of 11:01, 27 July 2017

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* establish national and regional databases on research and development activities.

== Context ==

=== Investment in research and development ===

ECOWAS countries still have a long way to go to reach the [[African Union|African Union’s]] target of devoting 1% of GDP to gross domestic expenditure on research and development (GERD). Mali comes closest (0.66% in 2010), followed by Senegal (0.54% in 2010), according to the [[UNESCO Science Report]] (2015). They are trailed by Ghana (0.38% in 2010), Nigeria and Togo (0.22% in 2007 and 2012 respectively), Burkina Faso (0.20% in 2009), Gambia (0.13% in 2011) and Cabo Verde (0.07% in 2007). The strong economic growth experienced by the subregion in recent years owing to the commodity boom does, of course, make it harder to improve the GERD/GDP ratio, since GDP keeps rising. Several countries have increased their commitment to research in recent years. Mali devoted just 0.25% of GDP to research and development in 2009, for instance, and Senegal has increased its own research intensity from 0.37% in 2008.<ref name=":0" />

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Despite policies promoting gender equality, women’s participation in research remains low. Cabo Verde, Senegal and Nigeria have some of the best ratios: around one in three (Cabo Verde) and one in four researchers. Concerning the sector of employment, the surprise comes from Mali, where half (49%) of researchers were working in the business enterprise sector in 2010, according to the [[UNESCO Institute for Statistics]].<ref name=":0" />

=== Impact of science and technology in West Africa ===

The agriculture sector suffers from chronic underinvestment in West Africa. By 2010, only Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger and Senegal had raised public expenditure to 10% of GDP, the target fixed by the ''Maputo Declaration'' (2003). Gambia, Ghana and Togo were on the threshold of reaching this target. Nigeria devoted 6% of GDP to agriculture and the remaining West African countries less than 5%.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://s3.amazonaws.com/one.org/images/131008_ONE_Maputo_FINAL.pdf|title=The Maputo Commitments and the 2014 African Union Year of Agriculture|last=ONE.org|first=|publisher=|year=2013|isbn=|___location=|pages=|quote=|via=}}</ref>

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In education, the three-tiered degree system (bachelor’s –master’s–PhD) has now been generalized to most West African countries. In the case of WAEMU countries, this is largely thanks to the Support to Higher Education, Science and Technology Project, funded by a grant from the [[African Development Bank]]. Between 2008 and 2014, WAEMU invested US$36 million in this reform.<ref name=":0" />

=== Moves to improve data collection ===

Countries are being encouraged to work with the ECOWAS Commission to improve data collection. Of the 13 countries which participated in the first phase of the African Science, Technology and Innovation Indicators Initiative (ASTII), just four from ECOWAS countries contributed to ASTII’s first collection of data on research for publication in the ''African Innovation Outlook'' (2011): Ghana, Mali, Nigeria and Senegal. ASTII was launched in 2007 by the African Union’s New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), in order to improve data collection and analysis in the field of research.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite book|url=http://www.nepad.org/resource/african-innovation-outlook-2010|title=African Innovation Outlook 2010|last=Planning and Coordinating Agency of the New Partnership for Africa's Development|first=|publisher=|year=2011|isbn=|___location=Pretoria|pages=|quote=|via=}}</ref>