CS/TCM/CST//I/5
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ANNEX III(a)
DRAFT STRATEGY AND IMPLEMENTATION PLAN FOR THE COMESA
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY PROGRAMME
11-(MD-mmn)
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1Introduction
1.1Background and Context
1.2Approach to the Assignment
2Building Blocks for Strategy Development
2.1Innovation Systems
2.2Clustering Approach
2.3Action Oriented Strategic and Learning Approach
3Roadmap for Strategy Development
3.1Establishment of the Institutional Framework
3.2Capacity Building
3.3Assessment of Regional Innovation Systems
3.4Programme Development (Programming)
4Outline of the Pilot Programme: Development of an Innovation System in the Agricultural sector
4.1Programme Objectives
4.2Programme Structure
Assessment of AgriculturalInnovation Systems
Innovative Clusters in Agriculture
Development of a Science and Technology Park
Elaboration of aComprehensive Science and Technology Programme
5Implementation Plan - Action Matrix
5.1Action Area Objectives
5.2Implementation Plan – Action Matrix
6Conclusions and Next Steps
1Introduction
1.1Background and Context
1.Exponential growth in scientific and technical knowledge provides unique opportunities for Africa to solve its critical challenges related to meeting basic needs, participating in the growing economy, addressing ecological and climate change problems and improving governance[1]. African leaders have in recent years been placing increasing emphasis on the role of science, technology and innovation. Decisions taken (8th African Union Summit, 2007; 28th Meeting of the COMESA Council of Ministers, 2010) represent a clear expression of political will and interest in introducing specific reforms and actions to endorse the role of science and technology in regional development.
2.COMESA Member States recognize the importance of science and technology in socio-economic and cultural development and have agreed to cooperate in various fields as stated in the decision of the 2010 COMESA Summit on Science and Technology Development. The need for concrete projects that will deliver tangible results for the region is the greatest priority, while mainstreaming science and technology in all COMESA programmes and adopting a cost effective approach that does not financially overburden the Member States were also emphasized as equally important. Concrete proposals include the establishment of common science and technology parks, the establishment of an ICT Training and Skill Development Fund, the elaboration of a common curriculum for COMESA in ICT and the establishment of data bases of individuals that can assist in the implementation of science and technology initiatives.
3.The COMESA Committee on Science and Technology requested the preparation of a Strategy and Implementation plan for the COMESA Science and Technology Programme. The draft strategy and plan shall be discussed at the first meeting of the Committee which is scheduled for July 2011.
4.The strategy and implementation plan for the COMESA Science and Technology Programme will take into consideration priorities underscored in the decision of the 2010 COMESA Summit on Science and Technology, reflecting the need for concrete projects that will deliver tangible results for the region in the context of regional cooperation in the field of science and technology. The strategy will thus inform COMESA Member States in their future decisions. It will provide guidelines on where to make strategic investments that strengthen regional cooperation, improve scientific and technological research capabilities and are relevant to other Science and Technology projects in the region.
1.2Approach to the Assignment
5.The goal of the assignment is to propose a strategy and an implementation plan for the COMESA Science and Technology Programme.
6.From a methodological perspective, there are two levels to be considered in dealing with the strategy and implementation plan design: technical preparatory work and consultation with stakeholders. The technical work level and consultation foresees the preparation of two sets of papers, namely The Discussion Paper on the Strategy and Implementation Programme and The Draft Strategy and Implementation Programme.
7.The Discussion Paper lays out a roadmap for the strategy and implementation plan for the COMESA Science and Technology Programme. The document proposes a set of policy options which are not ready-made solutions but rather orientation points which shall further lead to an effective portfolio of programmes and projects to be implemented in close cooperation of COMESA Member States. It does not define specific instruments, allocate funding or create responsibilities, but it does set the political objectives and present the motivation why specific activities in the chosen direction are deemed important. As such it seeks comments from the members of the Science and Technology Committee on the views expressed by the author. Accordingly, an attempt to make the document comprehensive has not been made, as analyses, interviews or studies have not been conducted. Instead, various existing studies and best practices were taken into account while preparing the present document, which is primarily based on The Decisions of the 2010 COMESA Summit on Science and Technology for Development, on CalestousJuma’s book The New Harvest, Agricultural Innovation in Africa[2]and the directions received from the Secretariat.
8.The document shall be presented at the COMESA Science and Technology Committee meeting, which is to be held in July 2011. Comments, suggestions, considerations will be collected and discussed and fed into the elaboration of the Draft Strategy and Implementation Plan. The Draft Strategy and Programmeare expected to be ready by the end of July 2011. Once ready they are expected to form the basis on which to engage in an in-depth consultation and consensus building process with Science and Technology Programme stakeholders.
9.The discussion paper has been divided into 4 sections. The document starts with a brief presentation of the proposed building blocks of the strategy. An action-oriented strategy is proposed to gain and demonstrate positive experience that allows for mutual learning (section 2). The strategy proposed puts forward pilot actions in the agricultural sector which is comprised of an analysis of actors in agriculture innovation systems, cluster development, the development of the Science and Technology Park (section 3). The programme foresees the evaluation of actions and the assessment of lessons learned as an input for the elaboration of a comprehensive Science and Technology Programme. The fourth section deals with the implementation plan in an action matrix format. The document concludes by offering conclusions and recommendations regarding the Strategy and Implementation Plan for COMESA Science and Technology Programme.
2Building Blocks for Strategy Development
10.Experiences in different regions as well as recent analyses and studies for Eastern and Southern Africa[3] outline some general knowledge and important conclusions that should be considered as building blocks for the COMESA Science and Technology Programme. These key building blocks include innovation systems, clustering and an action oriented strategic and learning approach.
2.1Innovation Systems
11.Innovation systems have received much attention in recent years due to the recognition of the critical importance of the process of disseminating and introducing innovation into the market. An innovation system may be defined as a network of institutions in the public and private sector whose activities and interactions initiate, import, modify and diffuse new technologies[4]. They can act as organizations that conduct research (including accessing results from elsewhere) and generate new knowledge or as organizations that support the commercialization of knowledge either by transforming it into market oriented and globally consumable innovations or by applying it in public services such as healthcare and education.
12.The challenge lays in strengthening theinnovation capabilities of all actors and providing favourable conditions and infrastructure in order to build a coherent and strong national and regional innovation system.
13.The key differential of innovation intensive regions is not merely in the presence of main innovation actors, such as public research and education institutions, companies, government institutions, technology parks, incubators, etc., but rather in their relationships, the way they are coordinated or connected. Experience shows that innovation performance of a country or region broadly depends on the interaction among all actors in producing, distributing and implementing various kinds of knowledge and thus their ability to both cooperate within the global knowledge creation system and utilize new knowledge and technologies[5].
14.From a policy perspective, the innovation system approach draws attention to the behaviour of local actors with respect to three key elements in the innovation process: learning, linkage and investment. In this regard, the ultimate challenge of science and technology policies is the development of a consultative relationship between universities, research institutions and the industry. This means cooperation between education and training institutions, on the one hand, and engineers and production managers on the other, leading to an increase in the stock of entrepreneurial knowledge. This further creates the need for the development of institutions which will be able to stimulate a continuous consultative relationship between buyers and sellers as well as institutions producing entrepreneurial knowledge and in addition develop business models which drive innovation, sustainable regional development and the well-being of local communities. Technological advances depend on managerial decisions. Policy measures should not focus on the creation of knowledge only, but should also support the development of systems that enable its faster dissemination within the economy.
2.2Clustering Approach
15.Essentially, clusters are geographic concentrations of interconnected companies and institutions in a particular field. Clustering fosters the diffusion of industrial organization in which innovation is built directly into a process whereby firms establish their core capabilities and networks with other firms. Clusters as “open systems” of enterprises, universities and other research institutions increase the capacity to generate new knowledge and stimulate specialization of knowledge on the one side and share this knowledge on the other side. Clusters enable the flow of knowledge and information between enterprises and institutions through networking. They support development of new knowledge and accelerate the efficiency of knowledge transfer into products and services. They also increase the capability of cluster members to find and absorb available technological advances worldwide.
16. Clustered firms, research institutes, universities and governments can jointly explore the best possible combinations of technological, economic, social, cultural, and institutional configurations, gaining knowledge and experience. This in turn also enables them to simultaneously respond to climate change challenges and protect the environment. The support for cluster development has become one of the key policy tools across the globe for stimulating the development of infrastructure in support of business innovation. As evidence suggests, the expected effects of clusters on regional/national growth were to a larger extend obtained in cases, where support for clusters was developed in order to stimulate the development of inter- and intra-enterprise cooperation as a type of business model where innovation capabilities are built and enhanced through the interaction between enterprises within a cluster and among clusters.
17.There is evidence of the existence of so-called “natural” clusters in many COMESA member states. They build on spatial proximity, language, culture and other mainly geographically determined factors, in industries such as agriculture, mining and others. The potential of such clusters could be exploited, while supporting their development to the level of open and dynamic systems with the potential of positive external effects on the overall socio-economic development in the region. Existing cluster groups and initiatives on the national level could be used to develop a critical mass of knowledge and competencies as well as infrastructure in the region in specific sectors. Clustering among key actors and leaders would allow for an increase in potential, the development of models for a regional innovation system, the development of infrastructure and framework conditions and at the same time for the development of unique capabilities of the region to attract international knowledge, available technological knowledge and investments. This is of special importance for the region facing a triple challenge in catching up, harnessing and applying available technological knowledge for its socio-economic development (i.e. in agriculture, health, environmental protection, energy and water supply,…).
2.3Action Oriented Strategic and Learning Approach
18.The development of innovation systems is a continuous process that requires a comprehensive and consistent strategy, shared and understood vision, clear priorities and an action plan. A pragmatic approach is essential for learning, adapting and demonstrating good practices, which aim at developing a system that is best suited to particular domestic circumstances, as well as building a broad regional consensus and trustful environment for policy reforms. Strategy development should go hand in hand with operational programmes in the selected priority fields.
19.The diversity of policy measures and support schemes, which aim at innovation, have been implemented in recent years worldwide, they reflect the diversity of framework conditions, cultural preferences and political priorities of different regions. There are no models to be copied. What is required is a general knowledge of the systems and models in comparable environments and the capacity to define local/regional potential and structures. As J. Stiglitz put forward: “… the best countries can do, is to experiment with various policy solutions and try to learn from best practices of other countries.”
20.An action-oriented strategy is needed to gain and demonstrate positive experience that allows for mutual learning. In light of these experiences, a system and different models can be developed ensuring the dissemination of practices throughout the region.
21.Setting up pilot projects in selected priority areas of concern is recommended as a way to develop a consistent strategy and policy programmes. While complex economic modelling and a forecasting framework could easily consume time and resources, the use of the pilot projects approach to narrow down the alternatives and focus on priority areas will ensure a clear, logical, and above all transparent process.
22.The selection of priorities or pilot actions depends on the institutional conditions of the region, the existing structures and competences, the degree of cooperation between actors, regional goals and priorities, etc. It is of most importance to select actions with the highest potential for spill over and demonstration effects that:
- demonstrate the capabilities and competences to ensure short term results, visibility and learning possibilities in existing structures and institutions;
- address main challenges and social and economic goals of the region; and
- support regional specialization and the potential for higher international visibility, positioning and increasing attractiveness within the international technology and innovation system.
3Roadmap for Strategy Development
23.The ambition of the Strategic Roadmap for the Science and Technology Programme is to articulate COMESA’s scientific and research action priority areas. The strategic objective is to strengthen COMESA’s Regional Innovation Systems in particular those of relevance for Member States and those which at the same time facilitate the adjustment processes with the aim of increasing the ability of the economy to attain growth on a sustainable basis for achieving higher living standards and social prosperity.
3.1Establishment of the Institutional Framework
24.The development of the Science and Technology Strategy in the COMESA region demands first of all expressive political will and an institutional framework that will support and govern the process. It is essential to ensure a governance structure on the highest level both in individual member states and on the regional level in order for the actors to act as agents of change, actively promoting the acquisition of knowledge and investment in key areas of competitiveness, namely technology, innovation and entrepreneurship.
25.COMESA’s Decision outlines the recommendations for the establishment of an institutional framework by:
- Creating a high-level Committee for Science, Technology and Innovation in COMESA;
- Establishing Offices for Science, Technology and Innovation at the highest level of Government in Member States; and
- Creating an Office of the Advisor on Science and Technology.
26.Institutions atboth, national and regional level should be established with a clear task of leading the process of strategy development in a systematic and integrated manner. While forming the structures, further basic principles should be acknowledged with high political authority to ensure real commitment and support for the process as well as professional authority with respective members from the academia and business sector to ensure high recognition in the region. Taking into account the climate change challenge and preservation of the environment, promotion of green innovation systems can help theCOMESA region’s pursuitof “green innovation” in order to move towards environmentally and socially sustainable, clean tech-based growth. Yet not all innovation systems are green and not all clusters are innovation systems. From a governance perspective, this means that there is need for governance structures that can manage horizontal cross-fertilization between clusters and can support both the use of emerging technologies and indigenous knowledge as well as the positioning of sectors in which clusters emerge as knowledge-intensive. In parallel, there is a strong need for organizations and individuals that are capable of assisting in the implementation and coordination of activities process.
27.Successful policy reforms and strategies require a public-private dialog, awareness raising and promotion of strategic orientation throughout the process of strategy development. An institutional framework is needed to actively promote the Decisions and the Science and Technology Strategic Framework at the very beginning of the process, to build on the institutional network and to develop the platform for public-private consultation.
28.Promotion and consultation activities should be designed for institutions taking into account their local/regional environments, and should include:
- Promoting regional academies of science, technology and engineering;
- Promoting innovation and outstanding accomplishments;
- Promoting international practices and models; and
- Developing a consultation mechanism and discussion platforms with existing innovation actors in the region.
3.2Capacity Building
29.Local capacity building is an essential part of all other action areas. Special focus will be put on ICT trainings and curriculum. At a later stage, a specific needs assessment shall be conducted and specific curriculum and training shall be developed in order to support smooth implementation of the Science and Technology Programme and enhance research and innovation capacities.