NASAC Strategic Action Agenda project (NASAC-The Royal Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs collaboration)

One of the important outcomes of the visit to the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) in February 2006 was the Strategic Action Agenda, which was formulated from a number of action items proposed by NASAC members.

The Strategic Action Agenda was developed, edited and revised further based on recommendations of the NASAC members as well as its General Assembly held in London, UK – October 2006. These considerations resulted in the NASAC member Academies endorsing the following 10 Action Items forming the core of the Strategic Action Agenda:

• Help create new academies and support existing members with developing strategic plans and concrete work plans.
• Organize for member Academies a series of workshops on best practices for merit-based science Academies.
• Develop, and share with member Academies, expertise on funding opportunities for research in Africa.
• Request a study on re-vitalizing African universities and research institutions in national innovation systems from the Inter Academy Council (IAC).
• Develop a website to inform the general public of NASAC and its activities and to facilitate information exchange among NASAC member Academies.
• Stimulate scientific networking and research collaboration between African and non-African scientists.
• Support member Academies with undertaking a fore-sighting exercise designed to a set research priorities at the national level.
• Continue to organize scientific conferences and ministerial roundtables on topics crucial to Africa.
• Position NASAC as an attractive partner in matters of Africa-wide policy making and collaboration.
• Support initiatives to develop concrete plans and proposals for the creation of national science foundations.

In July 2008, funding was received from the Royal Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs agreed to financially support five main activities of the NASAC Action Agenda for a period of three years as well as cover NASAC secretariat’s personnel cost.

This was made possible through the Ministry’s support to the NASAC proposal on “Stimulating a culture of scientific and technological excellence in Africa”. The remaining activities are funded through collaborative support from other strategic partners such as the Inter Academy Panel, the Royal Society of UK, the the European Science Foundation (ESF), and KNAW (The Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences).

Capacity building grants programme (NASAC-IAP collaboration)

Through this programme, NASAC member academies are awarded modest grants for capacity building mainly to support improvement in secretariat infrastructure and establishing internet connectivity or purchase IT (Information Technology) equipment. Through the financial support from the IAP - the global network of academies - the capacity building grants are competitively awarded to any of the NASAC member-Academies upon submission of successful funding proposals. The level of funding to support this programme is likely to increase in the upcoming financial year.

Regional Programme on Science Education (NASAC-IAP collaboration)

NASAC launched its Science Education Programme in 2005 with the Académie des Sciences et Techniques du Sénégal and the Uganda National Academy of Sciences appointed as lead academies for the Francophone and Anglophone regions of Africa respectively. Subsequent to the launching workshop in Senegal-2005, a focal point meeting was held in December 2006 to chart the way-forward for the project since its inception. At that meeting, the participating academies developed and discussed proposals for activities to be undertaken by the initiative in 2007.

Among the key recommendations was that NASAC should take on a role to advocate for Inquiry based science education (IBSE) in schools in Africa. The target academic levels for this form of teaching and learning science was primary and secondary schools.

NASAC has since then organized training workshops/seminars for primary and secondary school teachers for Anglophone and francophone member- countries. The workshops/seminars were to be held in Nairobi, Kenya (hosted by the African Academy of Science and Kenya National Academy of  Sciences) and Yaoundé, Cameroon (hosted by the Cameroon Academy of Sciences) [see report].

The Science Education Programme is guided by a steering committee of eminent science education experts:

• Prof. Dianne Greyson – Academy of Science of South Africa
• Prof. Elly Sabiiti – Uganda National Academy of Sciences
• Prof. Dicoum Eliezer Manguelle – Cameroon Academy of Sciences
• Mr. Ansoumana Sane - Academie Nationale des Sciences et Techniques du Senegal

This programme is linked to the IAP science education programme coordinated by Prof. Jorge Allende of the Chilean Academy.

ASADI Programme (NASAC-USNAS collaboration)

The African Science Academy Development Initiative (ASADI) is a ten-year programme funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and is intended to assist African science academies in capacity building. US National Academies is the programme leader committed to helping their African counterparts to achieve their objectives through capacity building, sharing of resources and experiences.

Capacity building involves activities geared towards strengthening infrastructure, experience and human resources of the individual African academies. The academies are expected to develop and sustain relationships with their respective governments and nations such that they will be regarded as trusted sources of excellent evidence - based policy advice.

Under this initiative, NASAC membership has hosted four international conferences in Kenya (2005), Cameroon (2006), Senegal (2007) and Ghana (2009). The conferences bring together a wide range of Africa’s scientists and policymakers to interact and deliberate on the role of science academies in delivering informed advice to their governments for decision-making purposes. The 2008 international Conference was held London, UK to review project progress and make a case for continuity of ASADI beyond the ten-years-project to Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and other funding institutions abroad. It is also hoped that the need for programme-expansion to include more that the current eight NASAC members will also be possible in the next project phase.

Besides the international conferences national academies in Nigeria, South Africa and Uganda currently receive intense support under this initiative. The AAS, and academies in Cameroon, Kenya, Ghana, and Senegal receive strategic planning funds.

The next ASADI conference is planned for 7-10 November 2010 hosted by Academy of Sciences of South Africa. See http://www.assaf.co.za /?p=1271 for details.

The Royal Society Pfizer African Academies Programme (NASAC-Royal Society-UK collaboration)

NASAC, the Royal Society and Pfizer (US) formed a partnership to build capacity in three national science academies: those of Ghana, Tanzania and Ethiopia. The Programme is flexible to fit each academy’s needs with the Royal Society and NASAC working closely with each academy to maximize and tailor the impact of the Programme to individual country context, whilst Pfizer’s network of expertise in - country will also act as a conduit for wider civic engagement. Workshops and other activities across the three year Programme will specifically focus on fundraising, engaging younger scientists, influencing policy and decision makers, and other critical objectives of an effective academy.

For more information see the project summary here.