Sisi orders to support young African researchers: Higher Education Min.

CAIRO – 10 Febraury 2018: President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi ordered the Ministry of Higher Education to adopt an initiative, funded by the government to support young African researchers and increase the number of scholarships presented to African countries, higher education minister Khaled Abdel Ghaffar said during the third Africa Forum on Science, Technology and Innovation "Africa STI Forum" on Saturday.

Abdel Ghaffar stated that the African countries have a long-term common plan, pointing out that 2063 vision aims to reduce poverty, prevent the spread of diseases and improve the social and economic situation on the continent.

Egypt has paid great attention to increasing spending on scientific research, which has raised Egypt's ranking globally in the field. Egypt has 55 public and private universities in addition to 157 institutes that contribute to African universities by raising capacities in various sciences, Abdel Ghaffar added.

The third Africa STI Forum is co-organized by the African Development Bank and the Egyptian government. The event is also supported by the Republic of South Korea, Japan and other partners.

The forum titled “The use of scientific research, technology and innovation tools to maximize the utilization of the natural resources of the African continent and their impact on the continent's economy” is being attended by 35 African Ministers of higher education, science, technology, and innovation in addition to representatives from the public and private sectors.

Africa STI emphasizes the importance of research to foster innovation in exploitable goods and services, by focusing on the private sector in five areas: climate change, nutrition, water, ICT and pharmaceuticals - five selected areas as they offer tangible opportunities for economic transformation in Africa.

It aims to achieve economic growth and enhance the competitiveness of the African private sector through the use of science, technology and innovation.

“This objective will be achieved by urging the countries of the continent to invest more in research, higher education and science, to build a knowledge economy and not to miss the train of the new industrial revolution on the move,” a statement from the forum read.