The Next Africa: investments in STEM and new technologies can help the continent leapfrog

The old narrative about the African continent being an aid-receiving land is shifting as countries enter a phase of regained stability, playing a more prominent role in the global economy. Today, Africa houses 1.2 billion people. By 2050 it will be home to one-quarter of the world’s population, with the median age below 20 years old in most African countries. This phenomenon of chronic youthfulness can be both an opportunity and a challenge to the continent. With consistent investments in education, innovation and entrepreneurship gaining track, Africa can finally leapfrog in the following decades. In its favor, Africa has vast natural resources. According to the United Nations, Africa holds 30% of the world’s mineral reserves, including gold, diamonds, cobalt, copper and uranium. It is also rich in natural gas, coal and petroleum. But the promise of development depends on guaranteeing energy security and investments in skills development, particularly in STEM disciplines. The GFCC interviewed two members taking important steps to boost innovative practices and advance development in the continent: Dr. Nkem Khumbah, GFCC Senior Fellow and Chairman of the Africa Development Futures Group and Mr. Phillip Phiri, Executive Director of the National Competitiveness Commission of Zimbabwe. Both organizations joined the GFCC in 2021. In the same year, the GFCC Global Innovation Summit held a special session on future markets in Africa, gathering leaders from Cameroon, South Africa, Tanzania, Zimbabwe and the United States. In this interview, Dr. Khumbah and Mr. Phiri discuss innovative practices to boost productivity, the need for new institutional frameworks to advance competitiveness, and new market opportunities.

GFCC: In which ways can innovation contribute to growth and stability in Africa in the next decade?

Prof. Nkem Khumbah: Innovation, broadly defined, is a requirement for growth and stability in Africa and in any other emerging region across the globe. African countries went through independence around 70 and 60 years ago, and many national institutions have not evolved since then. Innovation means upgrading these institutions to be more future-looking and attuned to today’s demands. Besides, there is a need to invest in talent, especially in science and technology (S&T) careers. Africa’s desire to pursue industrialization industrialize depends on competencies in S&T. Similarly, to find solutions for the planet’s most critical challenges today, such as climate change, biodiversity loss and energy security, we need investments in S&T. If Africa does not improve its S&T capacity, it cannot contribute to addressing these global challenges. It will be continuously dependent upon foreign countries.

GFCC: What is Zimbabwe doing to address its current gap in innovation capacity?

Mr. Phillip Phiri: We have a new national strategy to move the economy up in the value chain. Historically, Zimbabwe has been an exporter of primary products such as minerals, tobacco and horticulture. But we’ve realized that we need innovation to convert our commodities into value-added goods, create new jobs and boost productivity. We have put in place policies such as the Zimbabwe National Industrial Development Policy, to increase our industrial output by improving our value chains. In the education sector, we are developing Education 5.0, covering innovation and industrialization, and we are looking at academia playing a pivotal role to assist the manufacturing sector in innovative ways. A number of these strategies to address the gap have already taken place. For example, the Amarula beneficiation plant and the Uzumbani herb commercialization. The Amarula project resulted in creating jobs for many previously unemployed people in rural areas. Before the national strategy, we had a three-digit inflation figure and we’ve seen it go down to double digits. Our goal is to bring it down to a single digit by 2025. The underlying idea is to place innovation at the center of all socio-economic strategies. Another example of innovation in Zimbabwe was the creation of a road surfacing using coal, tar plant with asbestos and silicone developed and patented by a national university.

GFCC: What should African leaders do to increase innovation capacity considering all the socio-economic hurdles the continent faces?

Prof. Nkem Khumbah: One of the biggest challenges is the current institutional arrangements. Words like innovation have been picked up by a particular class or from international discourses, but not from domestic discourses. If African leaders want to boost innovation, they need to invest in structures to empower their own domestic thought leaders and universities. Innovation comes from the classroom and research labs. African leaders need to prioritize STEM manpower development in the university system. A significant proportion of public infrastructure development has been outsourced to foreign expatriates, often by Chinese and Europeans. Their expertise is the product of universities in their countries. African universities are not very active in the industrial development of African economies. You don’t see our African university graduates, for example, working on infrastructure development: the building of roads, airports, telecommunications. Instead, they travel overseas to work as unskilled immigrants. Besides, there is a disconnect between the university curriculum and the continent’s development and industrial needs. If that interface can be stranded and the university system pushed towards STEM, it could significantly impact the continent’s GDP.

Today, the frontier of innovation in Africa is primarily located in the private sector and detached from academia. There must be a huge investment in the scientific know-how of the continent because that is the foundation of everything innovative in the knowledge society. Today’s most innovative economies invest in science and technology in their universities.

GFCC: You both mentioned in previous GFCC meetings that African nations should use the examples of other developing countries and adapt innovation strategies, products and services to fit their landscape. How do you see these collaborations playing out?

Prof. Nkem Khumbah: African leaders need to leverage science diplomacy, and some countries, like South Africa, have already started doing that. When discussing bilateral arrangements, which are major funding sources in Africa, countries need to include science and technology transfer. African leaders should also consider putting scientists at their embassies abroad to harness scientific collaboration from host scientific communities. The United States has around 60 bilateral agreements and more than 2000 sub-agreements with different countries to facilitate collaboration on science and technology. African countries could use such instruments to enable knowledge and technology transfer.

Mr. Philip Phiri: I agree with you. However, in the case of Africa, technology development needs to take place in an environment able to assimilate it. Most African countries are not yet at that stage where they can talk about robotics or cyber affairs. We need to be looking at technology that will add value to African economies. We are interested in partners that can add value to Zimbabwe’s current resources. For example, companies providing technology and innovative solutions in agriculture, particularly now that we’re facing multiple climate challenges, especially droughts. We are looking at how we can use technology to climate-proof our agriculture. In addition, the largest mining companies are searching for new technologies to design a more controlled mining process in the mining sector, reducing human interface with underground activity. That’s the type of innovation we need for Africa, considering our current socio-economic stage.

GFCC: The widespread use of mobile money in Africa was quite innovative, providing a low-cost and straightforward solution for the population to transfer money and pay for services. What is the next large-scale opportunity that you see?

Mr. Phillip Phiri: What is missing is the ease of both paying individual taxes and your hospital bills online. While some services are available, there is room for improvement. Besides, connecting all government services to a digital database would be useful. Citizens wouldn’t need to go to a police station to collect their fingerprints for a new ID card. Everything would be accessible through a mobile phone.