Cameroon is seeking ways to mobilise its citizens to support a government-led campaign against soaring malaria deaths, as worsening floods aggravate health risks. Government officials in the central-west African country say regular flooding due to erratic rains is partly responsible for the recent spike in deaths from vector-borne diseases, because standing water encourages malaria-carrying mosquitoes […]
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Canada’s International Development Research Centre (IDRC) and the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID) announced today the Asian institutions that would be part of four new multi-partner research consortia for tackling the impacts of climate change in Africa and Asia. Funded under the Collaborative Adaptation Research Initiative in Africa and Asia (CARIAA) program, a seven-year, […]
Read More… from Canada and UK’s consortia to tackle key adaptation issues in Africa and Asia
Researchers mustn’t assume that the ‘comms people’ will do all the communicating, says Anna Kuznicka-Marry. Researchers working for a university or research institute may assume that because their organisation employs professional communications staff, there is no need for them to communicate their research. However, research communication is far too important to be left to communicators […]
Read More… from Africa: How Scientists Can Maximise the Impact of Their Research
Rapid technological changes are opening new frontiers in land tenure reform, a recent World Bank conference has heard, but some land tenure experts and community activists are sceptical about how much these technologies will help development. Geographic information, obtained from satellites, drones, databases and other sources such as traditional surveys and presented in computerised form, […]
Read More… from Technology praised for assisting land tenure reform
Officials from the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) recently told SciDev.Net that they have found high-level policymakers from many nations have a poor understanding of how best to support innovation in firms. I recently attended an UNCTAD expert meeting on fostering private sector innovation for development. There the agency announced it was launching a programme to train policymakers […]
Read More… from View on Private Sector: Innovation ‘spillover’ missed
Although not controlled by one institution, the internet depends on technical standards of protocol and structure to work. The management of these standards is currently conducted by several organisations, including the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). Among other things, it’s responsible for the distribution of the IP addresses that label computers or […]
Read More… from A role for developing nations in internet governance?
In today’s global economy, a workforce trained in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) is recognised as a primary driver of growth. Around the world, STEM education initiatives vary in scope, size, type, target populations and funding sources. What’s missing is a unified global mechanism for STEM education. Creating a Global STEM Fund would help support and implement effective and innovative STEM […]
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The world is dominated by a drive towards democratic governance, with politicians, especially in the developing world, making expansive promises when campaigning to deliver socioeconomic improvements — from potable water and food security to healthcare, employment and education. These pledges require the active involvement of smart, dynamic, patriotic, sincere and committed people. But rarely do we hear politicians in developing nations […]
Nineteen university-based African Centers of Excellence (ACE) across seven African countries will be receiving a combined grant of $150 million (around R1.6 billion) from the World Bank to help in the advancement of STEM education on the continent. ACEs in Nigeria, Ghana, Senegal, Benin, Burkina Faso, Gambia, Togo and Cameroon will receiving funding to provide […]
Read More… from World Bank to finance advanced STEM education in Africa
During her visit to Yale on April 4, Nobel Peace Prize laureate Leymah Gbowee called upon the many African students in her audience to return to their native countries to take a role in Africa’s future. “It is my hope and prayer that you will decide after Yale to go back,” she told the students. “Don’t stay […]
Read More… from Nobel laureate tells African students to make a difference by returning home