----- Original Message -----
From: "Andy Mensah" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Thursday, February 05, 2004 10:41 AM
Subject: [unioNews] Nepad opens new centre for bioresearch


Thursday February 05, 2004
<H3>Nepad opens new centre for bioresearch</H3>
By Naftali Mungai

<B><i>African scientists have identified centres of excellence as the
best avenue for spearheading scientific research in the
continent.</i></B>

In a meeting that was held in Nairobi last week, the scientists
agreed unanimously that the generation and utilisation of cutting-
edge science and technology in Africa will enable researchers and
farmers in the continent to increase productivity and improve the
quality of food where conventional methods have failed.

This was said by Prof Norah Olembo of the University of Nairobi and
Biotechnology Trust Africa when she addressed a meeting of African
scientists , the 'Stakeholder Consultation Meeting on the Biosciences
Facility in Africa'. Olembo, who is a member of the interim steering
committee of the biosciences facility to be established in Kenya, was
speaking on behalf of the committee chairman, Dr Romano Kiome, who is
also the director of the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute
(KARI).

The meeting that ended last Friday brought together African
scientists under the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD)
initiative. Olembo said that NEPAD's goal in science and technology
is "to harness and apply science and technology to fight poverty,
improve health, achieve environmental sustainability and
industrialization while contributing to global science and
innovation."

She said that biosciences is one of the four areas of focus by NEPAD
intended to fight poverty in Africa. Other areas are communication
sciences, geosciences and environmental sciences.

The centre, to be located at the International Livestock Research
Centre (ILRI) campus in Kabete, will serve the Eastern and Central
African region. Its main thrust will be to complement and support
agricultural research institutions and individuals in the region by
providing opportunities to researchers to conduct cutting edge
scientific investigation in well equipped laboratories. "Lack of such
facilities in Africa has been a major setback to innovation, leading
to serious brain drain," she told the meeting.

Speaking at the same function, the director of biotechnology at the
ILRI, Dr Ed Rege, said that the centre is the first in a network of
centres of excellence being established under the NEPAD initiative.
He said that ILRI had been chosen to host the centre because of its
long involvement in capacity building in biosciences relevant for
livestock research.

In May 2003, the Canadian Government, under the Canadian
International Development Agency (CIDA), agreed to fund the centre by
providing C$30 million. The Canadian Government stressed that this
contribution directly responded to "the priorities and proposals put
together by NEPAD." The Canadian Minister for International
Cooperation, Susan Whelan, launched the centre on October 31, 2003
and on November 3-7, a NEPAD ministerial conference on science and
technology was held in Johannesburg where it was announced to the
member countries.

Other donors are the Rockefeller Foundation and the Gatsby Trust as
well as the Doyle Foundation of Australia. Dr Rege said that the
objective of the meeting was to provide a platform for key
stakeholders to "make needed critical input into the design, scope,
operations and governance of the planned facility."

Addressing the same meting, the director for partnerships at the
International Centre for Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE), Dr
Onesmo ole Moi Yoi, also a member of the steering committee, said
that what Africa needs are institutions that are functional otherwise
it will miss out on the scientific revolution taking place in the
developed world like it missed out on the Green Revolution.

He cautioned against the risk of producing a white elephant by making
sure that the facility's programmes are relevant to the needs of the
stakeholders. Among the priority crops that will benefit from the
biosciences initiative are maize, sorghum, pigeon pea, groundnuts,
cotton, cassava, banana, potato, citrus, coffee, sweet potato and
sugarcane.

***
Naftali Mungai is the Science Editor, Daily Nation

 Copyright © 2004, Nation Media Group Ltd. All rights reserved.








------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ---------------------~-->
Buy Ink Cartridges or Refill Kits for your HP, Epson, Canon or Lexmark
Printer at MyInks.com. Free s/h on orders $50 or more to the US & Canada.
http://www.c1tracking.com/l.asp?cid=5511
http://us.click.yahoo.com/mOAaAA/3exGAA/qnsNAA/DKgolB/TM
---------------------------------------------------------------------~->

lllll
QUOTATION:

"All of us may not live to see the higher accomplishments of an African
empire, so strong and powerful as to compel the respect of mankind, but we
in our lifetime can so work and act as to make the dream a possibility
within another generation"
-<html><A HREF="http://members.aol.com/GhanaUnion/afrohero.html">Ancestor
Marcus Mosiah Garvey <i>(1887 - 1940)</i></A></html>

llllllllll
 *  //\\//\\ unioNews Newsgroup //\\//\\   *
 * http://members.aol.com/GhanaUnion *
 *          We're One People         *
 *          Join the Chorus          *
 -    African Union Shall Succeed    -
 =====================================
A luta Continua!

To subscribe to this group, send an eMail to:
[log in to unmask]
Yahoo! Groups Links

<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
     http://groups.yahoo.com/group/unioNews/

<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
     [log in to unmask]

<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
     http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
To Search in the Gambia-L archives, go to: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/CGI/wa.exe?S1=gambia-l
To contact the List Management, please send an e-mail to:
[log in to unmask]

To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface
at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~