Southern Africa, UNESCO Science Report 2021

UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT The race against time for smarter development Published in 2021 by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization 7, place de Fontenoy, 75352 Paris 07 SP, France © UNESCO 2021 ISBN: 978-92-3-100450-6 This publication is available in Open Access under the Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 IGO (CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/igo/). By using the content of this publication, the users accept to be bound by the terms of use of the UNESCO Open Access Repository (https://en.unesco. org/open-access/terms-use-ccbysa-en). The present license applies exclusively to the text content of the publication. For the use of any material not clearly identified as belonging to UNESCO, prior permission shall be requested from: [email protected] or UNESCO Publishing, 7, place de Fontenoy, 75352 Paris 07 SP France. Suggested citation: UNESCO (2021) UNESCO Science Report: the Race Against Time for Smarter Development. S. Schneegans, T. Straza and J. Lewis (eds). UNESCO Publishing: Paris. The designations employed and the presentation of material throughout this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of UNESCO concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The ideas and opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors; they are not necessarily those of UNESCO and do not commit the Organization. Design, typeset, data visualization and pre-press production: Baseline Arts Ltd, Oxford, United Kingdom Cover design: Eric Frogé, UNESCO Cover photo: A medical operator hands a box of Covid-19 test samples collected from rural hospitals to a drone flight operator at Zipline’s distribution centre in Omenako for delivery to the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research in Accra, in this composite image. © Zipline International Inc. Printed in France UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT The race against time for smarter development Report team Director of the Publication Shamila Nair-Bedouelle, Assistant Director-General for Natural Sciences Co-ordinator and Editor-in-Chief Susan Schneegans Deputy Editors Tiffany Straza and Jake Lewis Web and administrative assistant Ali Barbash Statistical support Tiffany Straza and Ioulia Sementchouk Editorial Board Gustavo Atilio Crespi, Lead Specialist, Competitiveness and Innovation Division, Inter-American Development Bank, USA Bitrina Diyamett, Founding Executive Director, Science, Technology and Innovation Policy Research Organization (STIPRO), Tanzania Sirin Elci, President, INOMER, and former Director, Technopolis Group, Belgium Jelel Ezzine, Founding Chairholder, UNESCO Chair on Science, Technology and Innovation Policy and Professor, National Engineering School of Tunis Sir Peter Gluckman, Chair, International Network for Government Science Advice and President-elect, International Council for Science, France Rosalba Casas Guerrero, Senior Researcher, Institute for Social Research, National Autonomous University of Mexico Syeda Tanveer Kausar Naim, former Chair, Pakistan Council for Science and Technology (COMSTECH) Wilhemina Quaye, Director, Science and Technology Policy Research Institute, Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, Ghana Slavo Radosevic, Special Advisor to the European Commissioner on Urban Policy on Economic Development Policy for Central and Eastern Europe Tim Turpin, Adjunct Professor, University of Western Sydney, Australia Kevin Urama, Senior Director, African Development Institute, Côte d’Ivoire iv | UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT Shahid Yusuf, Chief Economist, The Growth Dialogue, George Washington University School of Business, Washington, DC; Adjunct Professor, Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University; and Non-resident Fellow, Center for Global Development, Washington, DC Internal Review Committee Peggy Oti-Boateng, Guillermo Anllo, Salvatore Arico, Jonathan Baker, Noha Bawazir, Guy Broucke, Ernesto Calderon, Irena Caquet, Andrei Chevelev, Bernard Combes, Nigel Thomas Crawhall, Oumou Dicko, Peter Dogse, Ahmed Fahmi, Ghaith Fariz, Hubert Gijzen, Simone Grego, Nazar Hassan, Abdoulaye Ibrahim, Martiale Zebaze Kana, Dulat Kasymov, Shahbaz Khan, Engin Koncagul, Anthony Krause, Ozlem Adiyaman Lopes, Anthony Maduekwe, Maria del Mar Marcos, Bhanu Neupane, Juste Jean-Paul Ngome Abiaga, Nisha, Samuel Partey, Rohan Pathirage, Ana Persic, Mama Plea, Philippe Pypaert, Keven Robert, Rovani Sigamoney, Okjoo Sohn, Ai Sugiura, April Philippa Tash, Kristine Tovmasyan, Manh Ha Tran, Kornelia Tzinova, Kristof Vandenberghe and Soichiro Yasukawa Acknowledgments UNESCO wishes to express its gratitude to the Fondation Ipsen for financially supporting the production, dissemination and visual interpretation of the report. UNESCO also extends its thanks to the L’Oréal Foundation for sponsoring the French edition of the chapter in the report entitled ‘To be smart, the digital revolution will need to be inclusive’. UNESCO also takes this opportunity to thank those partners which have committed to producing the executive summary in additional languages. Thanks go also to: Sam Ajadi, Fátima Barbero, Pedro Barreto, Alexandre BédardVallée, Imam Bisher, Isabelle Brugnon, Brian Buffet, Aissata Dembele, Ronika Devi, Roberto de Pinho, Matthieu Guevel, Dario Guiliani, Manh Ha Tran, Talal El Hourani, Ofa Kaisamy, Beatrice Kaldun, Naima Korchi, Cathleen Lee, Christian Lefebvre, Dov Lynch, Mehrasa Mehrdadi, Yousser Mrad, Nimita Pandey, Rohan Pathirage, José Pessoa, Roberto de Pinho, Chakir Piro, Ryszard Pospiech, Giordano Righetti, Fabio Soares Eon, Natalia Tolochko, Martino Travagnin, Bobir Tukhtabayev, Saïd Ould Ahmedou Voffal, Frank Vukikomoala, Zengmei Wang, Martin Wickenden and Dongho Youm. UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT The race against time for smarter development SHORT SUMMARY The clock is ticking for transitioning to digital and ‘green’ societies It is striking how development priorities have aligned over the past five years. Countries of all income levels are prioritizing their transition to digital and ‘green’ economies, in parallel. This reflects a double imperative. On the one hand, the clock is ticking for countries to reach their Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. On the other, countries are convinced that their future economic competitiveness will depend upon how quickly they transition to digital societies. The report’s subtitle, ‘the race against time for smarter development’, is an allusion to these twin priorities. For developing countries, this imperative is obliging them to accelerate a process of industrialization and infrastructure development that would normally take decades. This process can be an opportunity for them to reduce their dependence on foreign technologies, as long as governments can ensure that industrialization and infrastructure development intersect with capacity-building in research and innovation. Since the private sector will need to drive much of the dual transition, governments everywhere are designing new policy tools to facilitate technology transfer to industry. 32 countries raised their research spending by 0.10% of GDP or more between 2014 and 2018 This seventh edition in the series arrives at a crucial juncture, as countries approach the halfway mark for delivering on their Sustainable Development Goals. The report finds that sustainability science is not yet mainstream in academic publishing at the global level and that it is developing countries which are publishing most, proportionately, on related topics. This trend, combined with greater government support for start-ups and small businesses in many countries, suggests that the current knowledge gap could narrow in the coming years, as long as the challenge of chronic underfunding can be overcome: four out of five countries still spend less than 1% of GDP on research and development. The UNESCO Science Report series targets policy-makers, academics, the intergovernmental and non-governmental communities, the media and other groups interested in understanding how science governance is shaping countries’ development agendas. ‘Since wars begin in the minds of men and women, it is in the minds of men and women that the defences of peace must be constructed’ UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT | v Acronyms ACAE AI AfDB ANSO AU BRI BRICS CCA CCAD CEMAC COMESA CYTED EAC EAEU ECCAS ECOSOC ECOWAS EAEU EFTA ERC EU FAO FDI FTE GCF GDP GERD HC IDB ICT IDB Association for Aeronautics and Space Arti cial intelligence African Development Bank Alliance of International Scienti c Organizations in the Belt and Road Regions African Union Belt and Road Initiative (China) Brazil, Russian Federation, India, China and South Africa Council of Canadian Academies Central America Commission for Environment and Development Central African Economic and Monetary Community Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa Ibero-American Programme of Science and Technology for Development East African Community Eurasian Economic Union Economic Community of Central African States United Nations Economic and Social Council Economic Community of West African States Eurasian Economic Union European Free Trade Association European Research Council European Union Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations Foreign direct investment Full-time equivalent Green Climate Fund Gross domestic product Gross domestic expenditure on research and development Head count Inter-American Development Bank Information and communication technology Inter-American Development Bank vi | UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT IDRC IGAD IMF INGSA International Development Research Centre Intergovernmental Authority on Development International Monetary Fund International Network for Government Science Advice IRENA International Renewable Energy Agency IUCN International Union for the Conservation of Nature NATO North Atlantic Treaty Organization NGO Non-governmental organization ODA O cial development assistance OECD Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development OECS Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States PCT Patent Cooperation Treaty PIDA Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa PISA Programme for International Student Assessment (OECD) PPP Purchasing power parity QIS Quantum information science R&D Research and development RICYT Network for Science and Technology Indicators – Ibero-American and Inter-American SADC Southern African Development Community SICA Central American Integration System SIDS Small Island Developing States SKA Square Kilometre Array SME Small and medium-sized enterprises STI Science, technology and innovation STEM Science, technology, engineering and mathematics UNDP United Nations Development Programme UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scienti c and Cultural Organization UNESCWA Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia USMCA United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement UWI University of the West Indies Preface António Guterres, United Nations Secretary-General International collaboration among scientists is also on the rise, which augurs well for research on challenges such as climate change, biodiversity loss and infectious diseases, which do not respect borders. These research communities, however, depend on supportive policies and funding and four out of five countries devote less than 1% of GDP to research and development. Many countries are aligning policies on science, technology and innovation with the Sustainable Development Goals. These include ambitious plans for decarbonizing the economy and reducing waste. But, despite the prioritization of sustainable development, sustainability science has not yet gone mainstream. UNESCO has found that developing countries focus more of their research efforts on topics vital for their development such as agro-ecology, climate-ready crops and sustainable waste management – but publications on these issues remain marginal in the overall research ecosystem. The Covid-19 pandemic has underscored three important lessons. The first is that we are all deeply interconnected. No-one will be safe from the virus until everyone is safe. The second lesson is that the same human activities that drive climate change and biodiversity loss also increase the risk of pandemics through their impact on the environment. Meanwhile, there were almost 150 000 publications on artificial intelligence and robotics in 2019. This field dominates scientific output on other cross-cutting technologies that have potential benefits for developing countries, such as energy, materials science, nanotechnology and biotechnology. As this report makes clear, we need to step up our commitment to sustainable development, in both economic and human terms. The third lesson is the vital importance of science. This year’s UNESCO Science Report – the Race Against Time for Smarter Development – focuses on the global shift towards economies that are greener, knowledge-based and make the best use of digital technologies. We must work to ensure that the pursuit of advanced technology and sustainable development go hand in hand. By aligning policies and resources, we can make far greater progress towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. The Report finds that the global researcher population continues to grow, yet there is a strong imbalance around the world. For example, in 2018, sub-Saharan Africa was home to 14% of the global population but only 0.7% of the world’s researchers. Preface | vii Contents Foreword xx Audrey Azoulay, Director-General of UNESCO The shifting landscape for scientists: a collection of essays 1 What the Covid-19 pandemic reveals about the evolving landscape of scientific advice 3 Peter Gluckman and Binyam Sisay Mendisu Covid-19: from crisis management to sustainable solutions 9 Eric D’Ortenzio, Evelyne Jouvin Marche, Oriane Puéchal, Inmaculada Ortega Pérez and Yazdan Yazdanpanah The time for open science is now 12 Ana Persic, Fernanda Beigel, Simon Hodson and Peggy Oti-Boateng Scientific literacy: an imperative for a complex world 17 Susan Schneegans and Shamila Nair-Bedouelle The integration of refugee and displaced scientists creates a win–win situation 20 Peter F. McGrath and Edward W. Lempinen Global standards now exist for a healthy ecosystem of research and innovation 24 April Tash Global trends 29 01: The race against time for smarter development 30 Susan Schneegans, Jake Lewis and Tiffany Straza 02: Are we using science for smarter development? 78 Tiffany Straza and Susan Schneegans 03: To be smart, the digital revolution will need to be inclusive Alessandro Bello, Tonya Blowers, Susan Schneegans and Tiffany Straza viii | UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT 108 A closer look at countries and regions 137 04: Canada 138 Paul Dufour 05: United States of America 152 Nicolas Vorontas, with Brennan Hoban and Connor Rabb 06: Caricom 180 Alison S. Gajadhar and Ishenkumba A. Kahwa 07: Latin America 200 Gabriela Dutrénit, Carlos Aguirre-Bastos, Martín Puchet and Mónica Salazar 08: Brazil 234 Hernan Chaimovich and Renato H. L. Pedrosa 09: European Union 254 Luc Soete, Sylvia Schwaag Serger, Johan Stierna and Hugo Hollanders 10: Southeast Europe 290 Djuro Kutlača 11: European Free Trade Association 308 Hans Peter Hertig 12: Countries in the Black Sea basin 322 Deniz Eröcal and Igor Yegorov 13: Russian Federation 346 Leonid Gokhberg and Tatiana Kuznetsova 14: Central Asia 366 Yerbol Suleimenov 15: Iran 394 Shuan Sadreghazi 16: Israel 408 Daphne Getz 17: The Arab States 422 Esra Eisa Aleisa, Abdelkader Djeflat and Moneef Zou’bi 18: West Africa 466 George Essegbey, Almamy Konté, Natewinde Sawadogo and Willie Siyanbola 19: Central and East Africa 496 Ann Njoki Kingiri and Charles Awono Onana Contents | ix 20: Southern Africa 534 Erika Kraemer-Mbula, Gussai Sheikheldin and Rungano Karimanzira 21: South Asia 574 Athar Osama, Sohan Prasad Sha and Seetha I. Wickremasinghe 22: India 604 Sunil Mani 23: China 622 Cong Cao 24: Japan 640 Mari Jibu and Yoshiyuki Osabe 25: Republic of Korea 662 Deok Soon Yim and Jaewon Lee 26: Southeast Asia and Oceania 674 Don Scott-Kemmis, Patarapong Intarakumnerd, Rajah Rasiah and Ranasinghe Amaradasa Annexes 717 Annex 1: Composition of regions and sub-regions 718 Annex 2: Broad fields of science 721 Annex 3: Glossary 723 Annex 4: Background information on bibliometric study of research trends on selected topics related to The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (see also chapter 2) 727 Annex 5: Technical and methodological note 733 Annex 6: Statistical annex (only available online) x | UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT 

UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT The race against time for smarter development Chapter 20: SOUTHERN AFRICA Published in 2021 by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization 7, place de Fontenoy, 75352 Paris 07 SP, France © UNESCO 2021 ISBN: 978-92-3-100450-6 This publication is available in Open Access under the Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 IGO (CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/igo/). By using the content of this publication, the users accept to be bound by the terms of use of the UNESCO Open Access Repository (https://en.unesco. org/open-access/terms-use-ccbysa-en). The present license applies exclusively to the text content of the publication. For the use of any material not clearly identified as belonging to UNESCO, prior permission shall be requested from: [email protected] or UNESCO Publishing, 7, place de Fontenoy, 75352 Paris 07 SP France. Suggested citation: Kraemer-Mbula, E.; Sheikheldin, G. and R. Karimanzira (2021) Southern Africa. In UNESCO Science Report: the Race Against Time for Smarter Development. Schneegans, S.; Straza, T. and J. Lewis (eds). UNESCO Publishing: Paris. The designations employed and the presentation of material throughout this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of UNESCO concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The ideas and opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors; they are not necessarily those of UNESCO and do not commit the Organization. Design, typeset, data visualization and pre-press production: Baseline Arts Ltd, Oxford, United Kingdom Cover design: Eric Frogé, UNESCO Cover photo: A medical operator hands a box of Covid-19 test samples collected from rural hospitals to a drone flight operator at Zipline’s distribution centre in Omenako for delivery to the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research in Accra, in this composite image. © Zipline International Inc. Printed in France UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT The race against time for smarter development Chapter 20: SOUTHERN AFRICA AT The Khi Solar One plant in South Africa was the first on the continent to use solar thermal tower technology. Commissioned in February 2016, it can supply 45 000 households with clean energy. South Africa is one of three Southern African countries with an electrification rate above 50%, along with Mauritius and Seychelles. The Southern African Development Community opened a Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency in Namibia in 2015, to broaden regional access to electricity. © Christy Strever A GLANCE Governments are making it easier to do business, in order to modernize their economies and ready themselves for the African Continental Free Trade Area. Some are striving to provide businesses with greater intellectual property protection. l l l l l Despite widespread progress in digital infrastructure development, cost has limited the uptake of e-services by the public and local businesses, in the absence of sufficient market competition. To ensure universal access to energy and mitigate climate change, countries are expanding the grid and investing in renewables, as the region confronts more severe storms and longer periods of drought. All but Comoros now count at least one active tech hub. Some of these hubs are employing Industry 4.0 technologies, such as 3D printers and drones, but financial sustainability remains a challenge. Scientists are developing closer ties, including in agricultural research and through the Square Kilometre Array hosted by South Africa. 534 | UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT 20 . Southern Africa Angola, Botswana, Comoros, Democratic Republic of Congo, Eswatini, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe Erika Kraemer-Mbula, Gussai Sheikheldin and Rungano Karimanzira INTRODUCTION Covid-19 exacerbating food insecurity The region’s economic powerhouse, South Africa, has recorded growth of just 0.79% of GDP, on average, since 2015, well below the SADC average of around 2% of GDP (Figure 20.1). In 2020, all SADC member states introduced social protection measures to cushion the impact of the Covid-19 epidemic. African innovation contributing to pandemic response In October 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO, 2020a) found that Africa accounted for 12.8% of 1 000 new or modified existing technologies developed worldwide to support the Covid-19 response. Most African inventions involved digital technologies (57.8%). About 25% made use of three-dimensional (3D) printing and 11% of robotics. South Africa accounted for the highest domestic share of African inventions. For instance, in April 2020, the South African start-up CapeBio developed a Covid-19 test kit based on a real-time polymerase chain reaction which provides results in 65 minutes. In April 2020, the South African government tasked the South African Radio Astronomy Observatory (SARAO) with managing the national effort to design, produce and procure 20 000 lung ventilators through the National Ventilator Programme. The observatory was chosen for its experience of designing sophisticated systems for the MeerKAT radio telescope in the Northern Cape (Box 20.1). By December 2020, 18 000 units had been produced and 7 000 distributed. The ventilators were paid for out of the Solidarity Fund, which contributed about ZAR 250 million (ca US$ 16.7 million) towards the initiative. The Africa Innovates report highlights several success stories (UNDP, 2020). For instance, in Zimbabwe, the Sis Joy chatbot, powered by artificial intelligence (AI), offers health advice to those with limited access to health care. A Covid-19 module has been integrated into Sis Joy to advise on when to see a doctor or self-quarantine. Users can also make appointments through volunteer doctors and nurses. Southern Africa | 535 Chapter 20 An economy dominated by services Since the previous UNESCO Science Report (Kraemer-Mbula and Scerri, 2015), the Southern African Development Community (SADC) has become the largest regional group within the African Union, with the addition of Comoros in August 2018.1 The population of Southern Africa has grown by 11% to 354 million since 2015 (see Table 19.1). Two-thirds are younger than 35 years. Health and education remain top priorities (see Table 19.2). In six countries, these sectors benefited from a reduction in military expenditure as a share of overall public expenditure between 2015 and 2018. However, in four countries, expenditure on health actually decreased between 2015 and 2017 (Figure 20.1). In 2018, Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Mauritius presented exceptionally high levels of out-of-pocket expenditure – borne directly by the patient – for health services. The region contributes about one-quarter of the continent’s GDP. Within Southern Africa, Angola, South Africa and Tanzania alone contribute about 73% of GDP. However, countries are still battling inequality and extreme poverty. This is especially true for Malawi, Madagascar and the Democratic Republic of Congo, where more than 70% of the population lives on less than US$ 1.90 per day. Unemployment, underpinned by weak economic growth, remains a major challenge, particularly for South Africa, Eswatini, Namibia, Botswana and Lesotho. The unemployment rate for youth is even higher than 33% in these countries. The SADC economy is dominated by the services sector, which contributes half of GDP or more in 12 countries (Figure 20.1).2 Mining and agriculture continue to make large contributions to many SADC economies. However, it is the manufacturing sector that has been identified as a key growth engine for the region, with the potential to drive industrialization and promote structural transformation, value addition and job creation. This sector grew by 4.3% in 2018 (AfDB, 2019a). In the Democratic Republic of Congo, the manufacturing sector now contributes one-fifth of GDP (Figure 20.1), up from 16% in 2013 (Kraemer-Mbula and Scerri, 2015). SADC (2020) reported in July 2020 that at least 60 million jobs in Southern Africa had been affected by Covid-19. The report estimates that, over 2019–2020, there was an almost 10% increase in the number of food-insecure people, a likely impact of the pandemic. Malawi, Eswatini and Zimbabwe saw the largest increases. In July 2020, SADC adopted harmonized guidelines with the Common Market for East and Southern Africa (COMESA) and the East African Community (EAC) for safely and efficiently moving goods and services during the Covid-19 pandemic. According to these guidelines, trade is to be facilitated by, among other things, providing frontline personnel with adequate personal protective equipment and testing all drivers before departure at accredited testing facilities. The SADC Secretariat has hosted meetings with COMESA and EAC to share information. One such meeting in June 2020 focused on ensuring the safety of workers while opening up the economy. Figure 20.1: Socio-economic trends in Southern Africa Rate of economic growth in Southern Africa, 2014–2019 (%) 9.47 7.40 6.90 6.73 5.76 5.70 4.82 4.70 4.50 4.15 3.74 3.34 2.88 2.38 1.85 6.92 6.72 6.16 5.79 Tanzania 4.80 Madagascar 4.71 Seychelles 4.38 Congo, Dem. Rep. 4.37 Malawi 3.55 Mauritius 3.25 Comoros 2.97 Botswana 2.22 Mozambique 2.01 Eswatini 1.71 Zambia 1.52 Lesotho 4.94 4.53 3.55 3.13 2.92 2.77 2.80 2.65 2.31 1.78 1.19 0.94 0.91 0.15 South Africa -0.87 Angola -1.13 Namibia -1.70 -8.10 Zimbabwe 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 Change in government expenditure on education, health and the military as a share of GDP, 2015–2018 (%) Military Comoros -0.39 Health Education 0.26 -0.17 -0.62 0.21 -0.89 0.13 Mozambique Malawi 0.28 0.32 0.31 Tanzania 0.12 Seychelles 0.41 0.34 0.10 -0.05 Eswatini 0.54 0.02 0.08 Lesotho 0.02 0.08 Mauritius 0.02 0.76 0.26 -0.10 -0.04 -0.33 -0.36 0.20 0.02 -0.27 -0.72 -1.19 -1.30 Madagascar South Africa Zambia -0.01 -0.66 -0.68 0.62 Botswana -0.26 Zimbabwe Congo, Dem. Rep. -0.15 Namibia 0.06 Angola Note: Data are unavailable for the change in education expenditure for Angola, Botswana, Comoros, Eswatini, Lesotho and Namibia. The health data cover the 2015–2017 period. 536 | UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT GDP per economic sector in Southern Africa, 2019 or closest year (%) Angola (2018) 43 9 61 2 Botswana 48 Comoros (2018) 28 41 53 9 Seychelles 2 South Africa 2 59 24 9 27 12 26 12 10% 8 8 8-1 61 0% 11 42 8 Zimbabwe (2018) 7 15 25 50 9 6 38 3 Zambia 13 -1 11 29 Tanzania (2017) 7 11 72 61 9 -2 20% 30% Agriculture 21 40% Services 50% Industry 60% 5 11 70% 10 80% Manufacturing (subset of industry) Chapter 20 43 7 8 13 17 24 Namibia 17 67 Mozambique 15 54 3 Mauritius 4 16 52 26 Malawi 4 29 30 23 Madagascar 4 20 34 51 4 Lesotho 9 9 35 20 Eswatini 5 54 33 Congo, Dem. Rep. 6 90% 100% Other High-tech exports from Southern Africa as a share of manufactured exports, 2015 and 2018 (%) Data labels are for 2018 2018 11.51-1 2015 6.89 5.64 4.78+1 5.62 5.32 2.14+1 3.03 0.67 2.20+1 2.31+1 0.30 0.27+1 0.21-1 so th o ia ib m Le Na M ad ag Es w as at in i ca r a an tsw Bo rit i au M yc he Se us lle s a bi Za m or Co m ba m Zi os e bw la go An ca So ut hA fri qu e bi oz am M Ta M nz ala an ia wi 0.22 Share of modern renewables in Southern Africa’s final energy consumption, 2014 and 2017 (%) 30.0 29.4 2014 27.6 20.8 18.7 2017 20.1 17.7 17.4 9.7 Mozambique Zambia Namibia Congo, Dem. Rep. 9.4 Zimbabwe 9.8 9.1 4.7 Mauritius 7.2 2.9 3.7 Angola South Africa -n/+n: data refer to n years before or after reference year Note: Modern renewables exclude traditional uses of bio-energy, such as wood burning. Botswana is excluded, as the value for this indicator is close to nil. Data are unavailable for some countries. Source: World Bank’s World Development Indicators, November 2020; for energy: International Energy Agency Southern Africa | 537 Trade liberalization at core of regional integration March 2018 saw the passing of a milestone, with the launch of the African Continental Free Trade Area. It entered its operational phase in July 2019, by which time 54 countries had signed the agreement and 29 had ratified it. Once fully operational, it will be the world’s largest free trade area. By committing countries to removing tariffs on 90% of goods, liberalizing tariffs on services and addressing other nontariff barriers, the free trade area should considerably boost the value of intra-Africa trade and investment. Trade liberalization is a core element of the SADC regional economic integration strategy. In 2018, SADC exports of goods to countries beyond the region (US$ 154 billion) stood at about the same level as imports (US$ 149 billion). IntraAfrican trade accounts for 14.4% of total African trade, with a decline observed in low-income countries from 22.6% in 2015 to 20.4% in 2018 (AfDB, 2019a). The SADC Trade-related Facility, an innovative programme financed to the tune of € 32 million by the SADC Secretariat and European Union (EU) since 2014, has provided 12 participating countries with financial and technical support to underpin regional integration, enhance trade with the EU and strengthen these countries’ competitiveness in global trade.3 Projects under this programme were due to be completed in September 2019 but some deadlines have been extended. SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT AGENDA Industrialization a regional focus One impediment to regional economic integration has been the dispersed order in which countries are progressing towards this common goal. The SADC’s original Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan (2003) envisaged establishing Box 20.1: The radio telescope at the heart of the Fourth Industrial Revolution South Africa signed the convention establishing the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) observatory in March 2019, concluding four years of negotiations. The treaty establishes the SKA Observatory as the second intergovernmental organization dedicated to astronomy after the European Southern Observatory; it will come into force once it has been ratified by the legislatures of at least five signatory countries, which must include the three SKA hosts, South Africa, Australia and the UK. As of September 2020, only the UK’s signature is pending. The core stations of the SKA are already under construction, however, in South Africa. Remote outer stations are spread across eight African countries: Botswana, Ghana (see Box 18.3), Kenya, Namibia, Madagascar, Mozambique, Mauritius and Zambia. Meanwhile, the MeerKAT will retain the title of the world’s most powerful radio telescope until the SKA is completed. The MeerKAT’s first 64 dishes were inaugurated in July 2018. An additional 133 dishes are being added to the MeerKAT from 2020 onwards. Scientific papers using data from the MeerKAT have already been published and cited in well-known publications. Although the South African Radio Astronomy Observatory is responsible for building the MeerKAT, the radio telescope is managed by the National 538 | UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT Research Foundation, itself co-ordinated by the Department of Science and Innovation. An investment boom for the African space industry About 75% of the components used in the construction of the MeerKAT have been sourced locally. Several inventions are being commercialized and more than ZAR 110 million (ca US$ 6.5 million) has been awarded to 16 domestic small and medium-sized enterprises through a financial assistance programme. The Centre for High Performance Computing has been extensively upgraded to meet the data demands of the MeerKAT and its staff have been trained in data science, in partnership with universities. Some 7 284 employment opportunities have been created by the construction of the MeerKat and the KAT-7, a radio telescope in the Northern Cape commissioned in 2012, counting related projects. About 300 people are employed fulltime on the SKA at three sites: Cape Town, Johannesburg and Carnarvon. Employees have helped schools in Carnarvon to enhance their teaching of maths and science; 14 pupils have also been awarded university bursaries and another 72 have been granted scholarships to study at further education and training colleges from 2020 onwards. In addition, a training centre has been built to give youth the artisanal skills that will be in heavy demand for the SKA and other industries in the Northern Cape. At the national level, more than 1 160 SKA bursaries have been granted, as of 2020, at undergraduate, PhD and postdoctoral levels; the target is to double this number by 2030. This should include awarding 133 bursaries to recipients from other SKA partner countries in Africa. The number of South African astronomers with a PhD has already tripled from 60 in 2015 to over 200. The long game The African Very Long Baseline Interferometry Network project aims to build a network of radio telescopes on the African continent (see Box 18.3). The SKA is assisting with this project by providing training and institutional support. The Centre for High Performance Computing is also rolling out a Big Data Africa Programme to build capabilities at universities in partner countries. The SKA project has attracted foreign direct investment of over ZAR 500 million (ca US$ 30 million) by hosting guest telescopes and instruments. It has also attracted leading astronomers from around the globe, who have relocated to South Africa and are assisting in skills transfer and technology exchange. Source: compiled by authors to realize strategic objectives, inadequate infrastructure and low funding levels for regional development projects (Ngwawi, 2019). A new regional fund for infrastructure One of the main funding mechanisms in the region is the European Development Fund, currently focusing on trade facilitation, finance and investment. In 2019, the SADC Secretariat signed three development co-operation programmes for a total of € 47 million over five years to foster inclusive, sustainable industrial development, greater intraregional trade and job creation.5 There have been internal discussions ever since the SADC Treaty was signed in 1992 about establishing a SADC Regional Development Fund to provide seed funding for the region’s ambitious infrastructure plans. In 2017, the decision was taken to operationalize this long-anticipated fund. The second phase of the Southern African Innovation Support Programme (SAIS II) was launched in 2017,6 to enhance regional co-operation and help national innovation systems contribute to inclusive businesses and development. It is funded by Finland’s Ministry for Foreign Affairs and hosted by Namibia’s National Commission for Research, Science and Technology but also operates in Botswana, South Africa, Tanzania and Zambia. The programme is developing a training curriculum for innovationsupporting organizations, mentoring innovation accelerators and holding hackathons and start-up weekends. Prepping for Industry 4.0 The technological advances brought about by the Fourth Industrial Revolution (also known as Industry 4.0) are set to transform global value chains. The SADC region needs to be more receptive to these opportunities, especially since it has placed industrial development at the heart of its regional integration agenda. All technologies related to Industry 4.0 require reliable, secure and affordable digital connectivity, at a minimum. Mobile connectivity is widespread in Southern Africa; over 90% of the population is covered by at least a 3G mobile network in Lesotho, Mauritius, Seychelles and South Africa. However, only the three latter countries have a level of Internet penetration (see Table 19.2) above the world average of 51% (2018). Table 20.1: Selected programmes adopted by the SADC Secretariat since 2015 Title Function SADC Industrialization Strategy and Roadmap (2015) promotes beneficiation and value addition to progress from a factor-driven development phase to an investment and efficiency-driven phase SADC Research and Innovation Management Capacity Programme (2016) aims to develop management capacities for research and innovation at research institutions SADC Regional Climate Change Programme (2016) provides a high-level framework for co-ordinated implementation in priority areas identified by member states SADC Cyberinfrastructure Framework (2016) fosters development of cyberinfrastructure to enable cutting-edge R&D within universities, research institutions and industry SADC Water Programme for Building Resilience to Floods and Droughts (2017) launched with UNESCO, has four thrusts: strengthening planning, policies and strategies; early warning, hazard mapping and disaster risk management; research, innovation and learning; and institutional and human capacity-building SADC Charter on Women in Science, Engineering and Technology (WiSET) Organization (2017) provides a legal and institutional framework for the establishment of SADC Women in Science, Engineering and Technology Organization SADC Intellectual Property Framework (2018) fosters mutual co-operation through policy and legislation, human and administrative infrastructure and respect for intellectual property rights Source: Anneline Morgan, SADC Secretariat Southern Africa | 539 Chapter 20 a free trade area in Southern Africa by 2008, followed by a customs union by 2010, a common market by 2015, a monetary union by 2016 and a common regional currency by 2018. The free trade area went ahead as planned but, as of December 2020, not all SADC member states are participating in this arrangement. Neither the customs union, nor the common market, nor the monetary union has yet been established. The SADC’s revised Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan (2015–2020) focuses on industrialization as a way to accelerate market integration and a more equitable distribution of opportunities among member states. The SADC Industrialization Strategy and Roadmap 2015–2063 (2015) complements this plan by prioritizing the development of three sectors with potential to integrate global value chains: agro-processing, mineral beneficiation and pharmaceuticals (Table 20.1). The region is developing a Protocol on Industry which is expected to be ready by the end of 2020. It will provide the legal mandate for the SADC Secretariat to co-ordinate the implementation of regional industrial programmes and projects, including the SADC Industrialisation Strategy and Roadmap and its Costed Action Plan (2017). The Regional Qualifications Framework for Schooling, Technical and Vocational Education and Training and Higher Education (SADCQF) was revised in 2016 to align it with the SADC Industrialisation Strategy and Roadmap. In parallel, a model implementation plan was developed for countries to follow. Eight countries are currently piloting an alignment of their national frameworks with SADCQF.4 This process will create an equivalence for qualifications obtained within SADC countries and should, thereby, boost mobility and regional integration. In parallel, SADC adopted a Vision 2050 framework in August 2020. In 2018, the Council of Ministers had directed the SADC Secretariat to align this future-oriented strategy with the African Union’s Agenda 2063: the Africa we Want (Box 20.2). This resulted in an updated Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan for 2020–2030, adopted in August 2020. A 2019 review highlighted the progress made in implementing the aforementioned strategies for greater market integration. It also identified a range of challenges, including the lack of tangible projects being implemented by member states Figure 20.2: Active tech hubs in Africa, 2020 744 Number of active tech hubs, incubators and accelerators across Africa in 2020 Tunisia 41 Morocco 49 Algeria 15 Egypt 55 Libya 6 Senegal 22 The Gambia 3 Mauritania 2 Niger 5 Mali 11 Chad 5 Sudan 3 Djibouti 3 Guinea-Bissau 1 Nigeria 101 Guinea 11 Central African Republic 1 Sierra Leone 9 Somalia 7 South Sudan 3 Ethiopia 9 Cameroon 28 Liberia 3 Uganda 19 Côte d'Ivoire 30 Kenya 70 Congo, Dem. Rep. 22 Burkina Faso 10 Rwanda 12 Burundi 4 Gabon 5 Ghana 36 Tanzania 31 Congo, Rep. 5 Togo 21 Benin 12 Malawi 6 Angola 17 Zambia 10 Mozambique 6 50+ hubs Madagascar 6 20–49 hubs Namibia 9 10–19 hubs Botswana 6 5–9 hubs Zimbabwe 15 1–4 hubs Data unavailable Eswatini 1 South Africa 93 Lesotho 5 UN Disclaimer African tech hubs by sectors of activity, 2020 (%) 6.4 Fintech 5.2 25.7 6.4 Number of products developed by African tech hubs in top ten product categories, 2020 Health Education 7.6 Agriculture 2020 13.7 Big data & analytics 18.1 16.9 Advisory services 14 41 14 Artificial intelligence 16 2020 16 Digital economy Energy 36 Drones Health Software Cleantech Working capital 15 16 17 32 Management Education Insurance Tourism Note: The total number may differ from the sum of hubs in all countries because some hubs are active in multiple countries. An entity is considered active if it had a digital presence over the past two quarters. A tech hub is an organization with a physical address, offering facilities, financial or in-kind support to tech entrepreneurs. An incubator provides facilities and/or in-kind support at an early stage. An accelerator provides facilities, short-term funding and support. Source: Briter Intelligence data, Briter Bridges, November 2020 540 | UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT Efforts to improve the business environment Several countries are striving to improve the business environment. For instance, Namibia’s Business and Intellectual Property Bill (2016) provides a framework for online business registration through the one-stop Integrated Customer Service Facility. This facility launched a portal called NamBizOne in 2017, to guide investors’ administrative and legal requirements for starting a business. The Seychellois government established the High-level Ease of Doing Business Committee in 2018. A number of reforms are being considered, such as that of creating a single window for business registration and making all relevant records and procedures digitally accessible, such as through online tax payments (Rep. Seychelles, 2020). In 2016, Seychelles launched its Seed Capital Grant Scheme, which provides seed capital of up to SCR 50 000 (ca US$ 2 500) for early-stage start-ups. To boost business confidence, the Democratic Republic of Congo adopted a law in July 2018 defining rules for public– private partnerships. In March 2020, Decree No 20/004 granted benefits to investors operating in the country’s special economic zones, including an exemption from import duties and taxes on machinery, tools and equipment for ten years. Most SADC countries have active tech hubs Research carried out by Groupe Spécial Mobile (GSMA) shows that, between 2016 and 2020, the number of active technology hubs across Africa surged from 314 to 744. In Southern Africa, the majority are located in South Africa (93), Tanzania (31), the Democratic Republic of Congo (22), Angola (17) and Zimbabwe (15) but most countries count several hubs. Increasingly, incubators and accelerators are targeting tech and digital entrepreneurs (Figure 20.2). About one-quarter of these hubs are classified as co-working spaces, or ‘makerspaces’, where the use of 3D printers, drones and other Industry 4.0 technologies is commonplace (AfDB, 2019a). Financial sustainability is a challenge for many of these hubs, which often rely on grants from development partners and international donors to survive (AfDB, 2019a). A stronger legal regime for intellectual property South Africa is the only country with a strong patenting record (Figure 20.3). It has not joined the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization, however (see Box 19.3), as membership was initially incompatible with certain requirements of the World Trade Organization’s Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, to which South Africa was a signatory. Patenting in Namibia and Tanzania has actually subsided since 2015 (Figure 20.3). Namibia has recently strengthened its legal and regulatory regime for intellectual property to boost innovation. Malawi, which registered no patents at the top five patent offices between 2015 and 2019, has done the same (see Country profiles). It is important for laws to be followed by a decree of application, if they are to have any effect. As of September 2019, legislation passed in Eswatini in 2018 concerning patenting, copyright and the establishment of an intellectual property tribunal had not been followed by a decree of application (Motsa and Magagula, 2019). In 2018, ministers adopted the SADC Intellectual Property Framework to foster mutual co-operation on reforming national intellectual property regimes. A Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency With only Seychelles, Mauritius and South Africa having achieved an electrification rate above 50% (see Table 19.2), improving access to electricity is a common policy objective. In 2015, the SADC Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency opened in Namibia, an initiative led by SADC ministers with a portfolio for energy.9 The overall share of renewables in the region’s power capacity increased from 23.5% in 2015 to approximately 38.7% in mid-2018 (REN21, 2018). Off-grid solutions being explored Countries are still underexploiting their potential for biomass, solar, wind and hydropower. Despite Namibia’s 300 days of sunshine a year, 82% of the primary energy supply was still being imported as of 2017, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA).10 Southern Africa | 541 Chapter 20 In 2017, ministers responsible for information and communication technologies (ICTs) released the SADC Declaration on the Fourth Industrial Revolution. It highlighted the importance of creating an enabling environment for ICT development and for implementation of the SADC Digital 2027 strategy. There were also discussions on whether to establish a regional think tank on the Fourth Industrial Revolution. During a policy dialogue in July 2018 to establish SADC’s position on Industry 4.0, ministers responsible for education, training, science and technology called for digitalization, technology and innovation to be prioritized. The same year, the ICT Subcommittee recommended drafting a SADC cybersecurity action plan, a SADC strategic position paper on big data and a SADC resolution. Several countries are exploring e-governance to improve the delivery of public services. This is the case of Madagascar, for instance, where nearly all public services are carried out in person. A law passed in 2018 (#027) called for the establishment of a national civil registry and identification centre. The same year, the government created a Digital Governance Unit to implement Madagascar’s Digital Governance Strategy (2019). Within this framework, a project is being implemented to establish an interoperable civil registry and introduce streamlined digital services for both citizens and businesses that adhere to the ‘once-only’ principle, within the Digital Governance and Identification Management System Project financed by the World Bank.7 In some countries, the development of infrastructure supporting the digital revolution has been held back by a lack of competition in the business sector, resulting in high costs and low uptake by businesses and consumers. This is the case in Lesotho and Mozambique, for instance. 8 Box 20.2: A pan-African vision for science In 2014, the African Union adopted its Science, Technology and Innovation Strategy for Africa to 2024 (STISA-2024), which calls on member states to ‘accelerate Africa’s transition to an innovation-led [and] knowledge-based economy’. This is one of the long-term goals of the African Union’s Agenda 2063: the Africa We Want, adopted in 2013. However, there is currently no official implementation plan for STISA-2024, nor any official set of indicators. In February 2020, the first continental report on the implementation of Agenda 2063 was released, based on reports received from 31 member states. Assessed against the seven aspirations of Agenda 2063,15 Southern Africa is one of the worst-performing regions, along with Central Africa, as it has achieved only 25% of the relevant targets. East Africa, by contrast, has achieved 39% of its own targets. The report also highlights the notable progress made by the continent in implementing its African Union Flagship Projects (see Table 19.3). For instance, the Single African Air Transport Market was launched in January 2018 and formally established by the Solemn Commitment, signed by 29 member states accounting for almost 80% of intra-African air traffic. By 2020, 32 member states had signed the 2018 Protocol to the Treaty Establishing the African Economic Community on the Free Movement of Persons, Right of Residence and Right of Establishment, which falls under the African Union’s Free Movement of People and the African Passport project (see Table 19.3). Limited progress in education, health and cybersecurity There has been limited progress in areas relating to education, health and cybersecurity. For instance, a flagship project focused on imparting quality education and medical teleexpertise to African Union member states, in collaboration with top Indian academic and medical institutions, was discontinued in 2017. By this point, it had seen 22 000 students graduate in various undergraduate and graduate disciplines, conducted 770 annual telemedicine consultations and held 6 700 medical education sessions for nurses and doctors. In cybersecurity, only four of the required 15 member states have ratified the Convention on Cybersecurity and Personal Data Protection (2014, see also Chapter 18). Although data protection guidelines were developed and launched in 2018, many African countries are still in the early stages of developing domestic cyberstrategies. Plans for an African Medicines Agency The African Union has established several institutions which should help to realize the objectives of STISA-2024 (Table 20.2). Other continental strategies complement these institutions, such as the Continental Education Strategy for Africa (2016) to 2025, the African Space Strategy (2017) and the revised African Health Strategy 2016–2030 (2016). One focus of the African Health Strategy is to mobilize research and innovation to address Africa’s health challenges. WHO’s Research for Health Strategy for the African Region 2016–2025 supplements this strategy (WHO-AFRO, 2015). The adoption of a treaty by ministers of health in May 2018 for the establishment of the African Medicines Agency represents a giant step towards harmonizing the continent’s regulatory framework for drugs. Support for evidence-based policy-making The year 2016 saw the launch of the Science Granting Councils Initiative, a continental, multi-funder initiative to strengthen the capacities of science granting councils in sub-Saharan Africa.* It focuses on strengthening councils’ capacities to support evidence-based policy-making. A cross-cutting theme is to promote women’s participation in science, technology and innovation (STI). Through this initiative, the science granting councils engage in capacity building activities; designing and monitoring research programmes, utilizing robust STI indicators; supporting knowledge exchange with the private sector; and establishing partnerships between the councils and other actors (Chataway et al., 2019). Table 20.2: Institutions established to support the Science, Technology and Innovation Strategy for Africa to 2024 Institutions linked directly to STISA-2024 African Scientific, Research and Innovation Council (est. 2016) has a mandate to implement STISA-2024 African Observatory of Science, Technology and Innovation (est. 2016) a continental repository for statistics and a source of analysis for evidence-based policymaking; produces the African Innovation Outlook Pan-African Intellectual Property Organization (est. 2016) yet to be ratified by any country (at least 15 required, see Box 19.3) Institutions linked indirectly to STISA-2024 Pan-African Private Sector Trade and Investment Committee (est. 2015) expected to be the precursor to an African Business Council, envisaged under the African Continental Free Trade Area architecture Africa Virtual and E-learning University (est. 2015) advancing slowly due to inadequate staffing and equipment for the delivery of online courses Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (est. 2015) expected to play a key role in developing public health institutes (see Box 19.2) Committee of Ten Heads of State and Government championing Education, Science and Technology (est. 2015) directly supporting implementation of STISA-2024 in each of Africa’s geographical regions; first meeting held in Malawi in 2018 Pan-African Quality Assurance and Accreditation Framework (est. 2014) developed in partnership with the Association of African Universities Source: AU (2019); Table 20.2: Anneline Morgan, SADC Secretariat 542 | UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT Climate-smart agriculture being explored Several countries have experienced severe episodes of drought and flooding since 2015. In 2019, Cyclone Idai caused severe flooding in Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique and Zimbabwe, for instance. In Mozambique, the government has been investing in climate-resilient infrastructure (Box 20.3). In 2017, UNESCO and the SADC launched the SADC Water Programme for Building Resilience to Floods and Droughts (Table 20.1). Climate-smart agricultural practices are being explored to mitigate the impact of extreme weather events. In Madagascar, where an estimated nine-tenths of the population works in agriculture, the Manitatra 2 project has been promoting organic warm compost, which offers higher yields and improves crops’ resistance to drought and disease. Funded by the EU and implemented by the Groupement Semis Direct Madagascar over the period 2018–2021, the project estimates that it had reached 18 000 Malagasy farmers by August 2020 (GCCA+, 2020). Zambia has developed a Climate-Smart Agriculture Investment Plan12 (2019) to improve its chances of achieving its goals for crop production and food availability by 2050. The plan predicts that climate change could diminish the yields of key crops by 25% but, crucially, that climate-smart agriculture could increase crop yields by 23%. Climate-smart agricultural practices would have the added advantage of mitigating greenhouse gas emissions. Landuse, land-use changes and forestry account for about 93% of Zambia’s emissions, most of which come from burning biomass (World Bank, 2019). More than eight-tenths of the population relies on wood-burning to cook (Nzobadila, 2017). Agriculture is a focus of national planning, especially in countries where food security presents a serious challenge. For instance, the combination of drought and flooding in Malawi over the 2015/2016 agricultural season led to the declaration of a State of Disaster. Malawi’s National Agricultural Policy (2016) and National Irrigation Policy (2016) together provide a strategic framework for improving productivity, economic diversification and value addition. Several countries have increased their scientific output on climate-ready crops since 2016 (see Figure 19.6). Some SADC countries are collaborating on agricultural research. In 2019, Malawi’s National Commission for Science and Technology developed collaborative calls for agricultural Figure 20.3: Number of IP5 patents granted to inventors from Southern Africa, 2015–2019 South African inventors 614 557 554 516 505 CHANGE OF SCALE Inventors from other Southern African countries 32 25 24 Mauritius 18 Eswatini 16 14 14 11 Seychelles 8 Zimbabwe 7 Tanzania 5 3 Tanzania 3 Madagascar 2 2 1 Zambia 1 Angola 1 DRC 0 0 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 Note: IP5 refers to the US Patent and Trademark Office, European Patent Office, Japanese Patent Office, Korean Intellectual Property Office and State Intellectual Property Office of the People’s Republic of China. Botswana, Comoros, Lesotho, Malawi and Mozambique received no IP5 patents during the period under study. Source: PATSTAT, data treatment by Science-Metrix Southern Africa | 543 Chapter 20 Namibia’s Fifth National Development Plan aims to expand electricity access to 67.5% of the population by 2023. The N$ 4.7 billion plan (ca US$ 340 million) announced by the public utilities company, NamPower, plans to add 220 MW to the electricity grid by 2023, through four plants powered by solar and wind energy, as well as biomass. Namibia’s largest solar plant, the Mariental Photovoltaic Solar Park (45.5 MW), became operational in September 2019. In the Democratic Republic of Congo, the African Development Bank (AfDB) has approved a US$ 20 million loan to implement the Green Mini-Grid Programme. This pilot project is installing three hybrid solar mini-grid systems in three towns between 2019 and 2023.11 Lesotho’s Scaling-Up Renewable Energy in Low Income Countries Investment Plan (2017), prepared with support from the World Bank, the AfDB and other donors, calculates the total potential capacity for domestic renewable resources at 2 300 MW. Lesotho currently relies on imports to meet about half of its total electricity demand (160 MW) [LEWA, 2018]. Under Lesotho’s Electrification Master Plan 2018–2028 (2018), prepared with support from the EU, one-fifth of the public budget for electrification has been earmarked for off-grid electrification. Solar photovoltaic energy is considered to be most suited to the purpose. The remainder of the budget will go towards expanding the grid. 2024 (STISA-2024), approved in 2014 (Box 20.2). This panAfrican strategy stressed the need to monitor and evaluate the implementation of policies. However, survey coverage remains fragmented; only five SADC countries have reliable data on gross domestic expenditure on research and development (GERD) for the years since 2013. No SADC country has reached the 1% target for research intensity that has been reaffirmed in both the African Union’s Agenda 2063 (2015) and STISA-2024 (Figure 20.4). According to the African Innovation Outlook (2019), the percentage of innovative firms is quite high in all countries: 52% in Namibia, 59% in Eswatini, 73% in Seychelles, 75% in Lesotho and 85% in Angola. This comes with a caveat; most countries are still developing their capacity to gather accurate innovation data and some have fairly small sample sizes.15 research with Mozambique and Zimbabwe, to address common knowledge gaps. Collaborative ventures were conducted through the Science Granting Councils Initiative, which Malawi joined at its inception in 2016.13 More countries monitoring STI SADC countries are strengthening their capacity to measure their national innovation systems. In the third African Innovation Outlook (2019), ten out of 16 countries reported data from national surveys, five of which were new additions to this report.14 Southern Africa is presently the bestcovered region in Africa for data on science, technology and innovation (STI, see chapters 18 and 19). Improvements in this area could be a sign of the impact of the Science, Technology and Innovation Strategy for Africa Figure 20.4: Trends in research expenditure in Southern Africa GERD as a share of GDP in Southern Africa, 2018 or closest year (%) South Africa (2017) 0.83 0.41 Congo, Dem. Rep. (2015) Mauritius 0.35 Mozambique (2015) 0.34 Namibia (2014) 0.34 Eswatini (2015) 0.27 0.22 Seychelles (2016) Lesotho (2015) Madagascar (2017) 0.05 0.01 GERD by source of funds in Southern Africa, 2018 or closest year (%) Business Government 1.4 0.2 100.0 Private non-profit Abroad 1.0 4.4 4.1 7.8 0.3 0.8 22.3 33.5 34.5 2016 Higher education 2015 2015 2.5 63.8 2015 2018 41.7 91.1 Angola Congo, Dem. Rep. 0.5 39.9 2015 Eswatini 15.8 43.5 13.3 Mozambique Note: Data are unavailable for some countries. Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics 544 | UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT 3.9 6.0 79.4 Lesotho 1.5 10.2 0.2 2.0 11.1 Mauritius 33.9 41.5 2014 2016 63.2 Namibia 3.2 4.5 Seychelles 2017 56.1 46.7 South Africa Box 20.3: Climate-resilient infrastructure for Mozambique The rising frequency and intensity of extreme weather events in Mozambique have placed a focus on climate-resilient infrastructure (Rep. Mozambique, 2020). Under the Safer Schools Project, more than 1 000 resilient classrooms have been built since 2017. Guidelines include building schools on firm subsoil, above ground level; ensuring that they are symmetrical in shape; and reinforcing the roofs (UEM and UN-Habitat, 2015). Drainage channels installed in the Mozambican city of Beria in 2018 reduced the damage inflicted by storm water flooding discharged by Cyclone Idai in 2019. Highly variable researcher density Researcher density varies considerably in the SADC region (Figure 20.5). Eswatini is the only country to have achieved gender equality, with a 47% share of women researchers, although South Africa (44%) is on the cusp (see chapter 3). Few researchers work in the business sector, with the exception of South Africa (Figure 20.5). Eswatini, Namibia and South Africa are the only countries where more than 10% of researchers work in the business enterprise sector, although most countries do not publish this type of data (Figure 20.5). Eswatini became one of the first countries to draft a constitution for the members of its SADC Women in Science, Engineering and Technology Chapter after the SADC Secretariat adopted a Charter on Women in Science, Engineering and Technology in 2017 to foster gender equality. In 2015, the Southern Africa Network for Biosciences, a programme run by the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), launched FemBioBiz to empower women entrepreneurs in the agri-food, health and nutrition sectors. It is billed as the largest programme of its type in Southern Africa. Its objectives are to heighten the visibility of women in biosciences and contribute to the investment-readiness of women-led businesses, as well as to the entrepreneurship ecosystem as a whole. To this end, it is currently developing peer-to-peer networks, conducting training and providing mentorship in eight Southern African countries.16 Strong growth in materials science South Africa accounted for half of sub-Saharan Africa’s publication output on cross-cutting strategic technologies Source: compiled by Jake Lewis between 2011 and 2019 (Figure 20.6). However, many of these publications may have co-authors from other African countries, since intra-African co-authorship is growing (Figure 20.7; see also Figures 18.5 and 19.5). Botswana, Mauritius, Namibia and South Africa figure in the top 15 for sub-Saharan Africa for publication intensity on AI and robotics; energy-related research; and biotechnology. Angola scores highly for publication intensity in materials science and South Africa for the volume of output on this technology (Figure 20.6). In 2019, South Africa published most in Africa on energy-related topics (959 publications), followed by AI and robotics (701). Growth between 2012 and 2019 was fastest in materials science (from 123 to 441 publications) and nanotechnology (from 40 to 84 publications) [Figure 20.6]. South Africa is set to host what will be the world’s largest telescope, the Square Kilometre Array, which offers Southern African countries an opportunity to lead in the application of Industry 4.0 technologies. Since pre-construction began in 2013, the project has trained scientists and engineers at MSc and PhD level and developed both physical and soft infrastructure, including software (Box 20.1). COUNTRY PROFILES ANGOLA Efforts to improve the business environment In 2019, Angola was the second-largest Southern African economy but one of the lowest-ranking countries in the Doing Business index. The incumbent president, João Lourenço, was elected in 2017 on a platform to fight corruption, diversify the economy and attract foreign investment (World Bank, 2020a). The Private Investment Law (2018) and Competition Law (2018) set out to streamline and simplify processes for foreign investors. The former established a special regime for investment in priority sectors, among which figure education, research and innovation, telecommunications and information technology, agriculture and the production and distribution of electricity. The government has also set up the Electronic Private Transaction Processing System, a one-stop platform for submitting an investment proposal. Southern Africa | 545 Chapter 20 This makes international comparisons and benchmarking of innovation indicators difficult. A study analysing the number of engineers, technologists and technicians in the region, as well as member states’ capacity for industrialization, was endorsed by the SADC Ministers of Science and Technology in 2017 (Figure 20.5). The study by Lawless (2019) informs implementation of key SADC policies such as the Protocol on Education and Training (1997) and the Protocol on Science, Technology and Innovation (2008), the latter having outlined the legal framework for co-operation in this area. The study, thereby, provides a basis for planning and implementing programmes to develop infrastructure. However, the Municipal Recovery and Resilience Plan (2019) released subsequently acknowledged that the drainage channels were in need of rehabilitation and expansion, for a total estimated cost of US$ 193 million over five years. Figure 20.5: Trends in researchers in Southern Africa Researchers (FTE) in Southern Africa by field, 2017 or closest year (%) In 2017, engineering graduates accounted for 9% of the workforce in SADC countries. Natural sciences Engineering Medical sciences Agriculture & veterinary Social sciences Humanities & arts Angola (2016) 28.7 7.1 8.7 28.5 22.0 5.0 Congo, Dem. Rep. (2015) 37.6 5.2 7.9 26.0 15.1 4.5 Eswatini (2015) 13.6 3.7 33.9 16.8 25.5 4.5 Lesotho (2015) 38.4 26.0 – 33.5 2.0 – Madagascar 34.5 24.9 8.7 9.5 14.1 8.3 Mauritius 17.8 7.3 3.4 21.3 8.7 1.8 Mozambique (2015) 22.1 8.3 11.6 22.2 35.8 – Namibia (2014) 31.0 2.9 3.5 18.7 37.2 0.6 In 2017, the number of practicing engineers ranged from 18 to 531 per 100 000 inhabitants in SADC countries; the average was 68 per 100 000 inhabitants. Researchers (FTE) in Southern Africa per million inhabitants, 2018 Share of female researchers (HC) in Southern Africa, 2018 (%) Congo, Dem. Rep. Eswatini Namibia 142.3-3 149.5-4 8.7-3 South Africa Mauritius Angola 44.9-1 473.9 28.7-2 Mozambique 43.0-3 Mozambique Mauritius 28.9-3 43.7 Madagascar South Africa 34.0 517.7-1 Lesotho -3 24.1 Angola -2 18.8 Madagascar Eswatini Congo, Dem. Rep. -3 41.4 Namibia -3 10.6 33.0 Lesotho 36.4-3 38.7-4 Researchers (FTE) in Southern Africa by sector of employment, 2018 or closest year (%) Business 1.0 4.4 0.3 6.9 18.6 Government 49.1 68.4 28.2 34.9 39.4 33.1 22.1 39.6 9.1 Higher education 50.9 26.5 43.1 65.1 60.6 62.5 77.3 49.1 71.1 5.1 27.7 0.3 4.4 1.2 Congo, Dem. Rep. (2015) Eswatini (2015) Private non-profit Angola (2016) Lesotho (2015) -n: data refer to n years before reference year Note: Data are unavailable for some countries. Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics; for engineering workforce: Lawless (2019) 546 | UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT Madagascar Mauritius Mozambique (2015) Namibia (2014) South Africa (2017) Doctoral training in strategic areas Researcher density is insufficient to meet development needs (Figure 20.5). To address this shortage, UNESCO and the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Technology and Innovation launched a national doctoral training programme in STI in 2019 with a budget of US$ 50 million. Its objective is to train 160 candidates, with a focus on environment, water, energy, digital technologies, life sciences, natural resources management and marine resources management. The project has a focus on women, with the aim of raising their share of doctoral enrolment to 30% from an undisclosed baseline. Plans for a new science park Although many of the provisions of the National Policy for Science, Technology and Innovation (2011) have not been implemented, there has been progress in some areas. In 2019, plans were announced to build a Science and Technology Park in Luanda, with the AfDB providing 90% of the US$ 100 million required for its construction. The AfDB is also financing the Science and Technology Development Project, running over 2016–2022, which is equipping the Mabubas Science and Technology Park, financing scholarships and research projects and providing support to improve intellectual property management, among other things. Angola and Brazil linked through deepwater cable system There is evidence of entrepreneurship. Local apps that support informal businesses have been developed, such as in transport services and e-finance. For instance, the ride-hailing start-up Kubinga was reaching about 20 000 users each month in 2019, after two years of operating. The Roque-Online start-up, which allows customers to order goods hand-picked at local markets, accrued 36 000 members in two years (Burns, 2019). In 2017, Angola Cables became a Microsoft ExpressRoute partner. A year later, it completed its South Atlantic Cable System deepwater installation connecting Angola and Brazil with the first low latency communications cable to be established between South America and Africa.17 In 2019, the same company launched its Cloud as a Service platform in Africa to meet demand for cloud-based business applications. Meanwhile, Internet Technologies Angola launched two data centres in 2016 and 2019, equipped with modern data security and potential cloud computing services. Angola’s first digital bank, DUbank Angola, was awaiting approval from the banking sector regulator, as of early 2020 (Macauhub, 2020). BOTSWANA Diversifying to meet twin challenges In 2017, Botswana was facing the ‘twin challenges of declining economic growth and a high unemployment rate’, according to the National Development Plan 2017–2023. The unemployment rate was 18.7% in 2020. According to the World Bank (2020j), these phenomena are indicative of the limitations of Botswana’s diamond-led development model, an analysis shared by the government. Diversifying the economy is one of the priorities of the National Development Plan, along with developing human capital, promoting social development and the sustainable use of natural resources, good governance and national security. This plan has been guided by Vision 2036 (2016), Botswana’s blueprint for achieving high-income status by 2036. To diversify the economy, Botswana is focusing on areas of comparative advantage, among which feature financial services, education and health, alongside diamonds, beef, tourism and mining. Special economic zones are to be developed around Sir Seretse Khama International Airport and in the Padamatenga area, to attract investment. Business reforms yet to make their mark Over 2013–2017, Botswana slipped 12 places in the World Bank’s Doing Business index. To reverse this trend, the National Development Plan recommits to implementing the Doing Business Reform Roadmap (2015), a framework for reform to introduce deadlines for business registration, offer cadastral maps online and streamline bureaucratic procedures. The Industrial Development Act (2019) and Trade Act (2019) came into effect in June 2020. These acts make license and registration certificates issuable over the counter by local authorities. Reforms to the business environment are yet to make their mark; by 2020 Botswana had slipped a further 16 places to 87th position in the World Bank’s Doing Business index. An Academy of Sciences The Botswana Academy of Sciences was launched in November 2015. Pending an updated version of the National Southern Africa | 547 Chapter 20 Slow but steady electrification The mid-term National Development Plan 2018–2022 (2018) has six strategic thrusts: human development and wellbeing; sustainable development and an inclusive economy; building infrastructure; promoting peace, good governance, democracy, the rule of law and decentralization; ‘harmonious development’; and guaranteeing territorial integrity as well as strengthening the country’s activity at the regional and international level. It anticipates creating a network of development zones or hubs to address stability, growth and jobs. In August 2020, the government announced that about one-quarter of the projects planned under the strategy had been cut, owing to falling global prices for oil and other effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. The government notes that electrical infrastructure is inadequate and unreliable, with energy tariffs failing to reflect costs (AmCham and Aipex, 2019). Nevertheless, there have been some gains in access to electricity (see Table 19.2). The Angola 2025 Long Term Strategy (2008) set a target of 60% for this indicator. In February 2020, the Ministry of Energy and Water announced plans for five solar power plants for a total of 300 MW, to be developed by 2022 at a cost of about US$ 500 million (Goodrich, 2020a). Policy on Research, Science, Technology and Innovation (2011), the National Development Plan commits to raising investment in research, which is to be oriented towards economic and industrial needs in the following priority sectors: health; services; ecotourism; software development; agriculture; and manufacturing. In 2016, the government drafted a Botswana Climate Change Response Policy, with support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). It proposes developing a climate-focused research agenda, to guide academic curricula. A National Climate Change Unit is to be established to implement and monitor measures. A national climate change adaptation plan framework was awaiting formal endorsement in June 2020. According to a UNESCO study of 56 research topics related to the SDGs, Botswanan output on invasive species has surged from 1 (2012–2015) to 15 (2016–2019) publications. Researchers have been tackling the problem of the invasive water fern, Salvinia molesta, which has been threatening the Okavango Delta, a UNESCO World Heritage site and Africa’s largest wetland, for the past three decades. Thanks to the introduction of a Salvinia-munching weevil in 2002 as an alternative to chemical pesticides, the invasion was brought under control in 2016. A plan to match training to industrial needs In the National Development Plan 11, the government recommits to implementing the Education and Training Sector Strategic Plan for 2015–2020. This plan sets out a transformational agenda to revise curricula at all levels of education, augment the use of ICTs and match training to industrial needs. It is proposed to introduce multiple pathways at the upper secondary level, to allow students to choose between vocational skills, social sciences, basic sciences and business studies. The Botswana International University of Science and Technology (est. 2012) was fully operational by the 2014/2015 academic year. According to the university’s annual report, there were 1 881 students enrolled in 2018/2019, 33% of whom were women. In the same year, the university’s research focus areas included (BIUST, 2019): l remote sensing of natural resources and the environment; l sustainable energy and resource beneficiation; l solar energy materials; l applied nuclear sciences and technology; l transformation enabled by information technology; l bioinformatics, data science and high performance computing; and l artificial intelligence and smart systems. Under the EU-funded Pan-African Planetary and Space Science Network, the university has received a grant of € 1.4 million to ready young scientists for projects like the Square Kilometre Array (Box 20.1).18 548 | UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT Developing e-services In the National Development Plan, there has been a policy shift from expanding infrastructure to developing effective e-services and ensuring broadband connectivity. Since 2009, the Mascom company has established a network of rural community centres (Masco Kitsong Centres) which provide access to Internet and other digital services like mobile money, as well as computer training. By May 2018, there were 110 such centres in as many villages. Mascom considers itself a public interest entity. In 2016, it launched the e-Schools Project which, by July 2019, had connected 623 government schools to Internet.19 In 2020, Mascom provided Botswanans with free Internet access to the government’s Covid-19 tracker system. This government system was developed in collaboration with the United Nations Children’s Fund, the University of Oslo and other partners. The system was operational by 27 March 2020. It comprises a case-based surveillance programme, a contactregistration and follow-up programme, as well as a ports of entry screening and follow-up programme (UNICEF, 2020). Legislation to improve cybersecurity was foreseen in the National Development Plan. In 2018, parliament passed the Data Protection Act establishing the Information and Data Protection Commission. The act enshrines the right of citizens to access their personal data and to object to the processing of their personal data. However, as of March 2020, the commission had not yet been established, nor the law enforced (Alt Advisory, 2020). Launch of the Botswana Innovation Fund The Botswana Innovation Hub (est. 2012) is Botswana’s flagship hub. Its Information and Technology Division hosts the Technology Entrepreneurship Programme, which offers support through pre-incubation, incubation and acceleration stages. The hub’s five priority focal areas are mining technology, biotechnology, cleantech, ICTs and indigenous knowledge. Over 2017–2018, the hub supported more than 100 start-ups. In 2018, the hub launched the Botswana Innovation Fund. Its first call for proposals led to the allocation of BWP 5.6 million (ca US$ 500 000) in funding to seven projects. Among these was the Intelligent Traffic Management System, a smart system that adjusts traffic light periods based on live traffic flow. Bridge linking Botswana with Zambia completed The National Development Plan notes that a lack of strategic planning in infrastructural development has led to poor waste management, environmentally unfriendly construction and a loss of biodiversity. Measures foreseen in the strategy include developing legislation to regulate the use of domestic and industrial chemicals and boost the capacity to treat and dispose of hazardous waste. The plan foresees expanding investment in infrastructure in areas that include wastewater treatment and re-use, railway construction, education and health. In October 2020, construction of the US$ 260 million Kazungula bridge linking Botswana with Zambia was completed. It is expected to serve as a vital transport corridor. COMOROS Plans to stabilize the energy sector The government aims to stabilize the energy sector by implementing decrees to separate water and electricity, create a new electricity company and review the electricity tariff structure. Between 2016 and 2018, the real electricity access rate rose from 75.4% to 77.8% of the population and available capacity increased by 32% (from 19 MW to 25 MW) [AfDB, 2020a]. According to the AfDB (2020a), key national strategies have not been fully implemented. These include the Industrialization Strategy (2017), the Education Sector Transition Policy (2017) and the National Strategy for the Blue Economy (2013). DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO A record year for deforestation The Democratic Republic of Congo is presently characterized by weak governance and great fragility, a consequence of ongoing conflict and guerrilla activity in several provinces (World Bank 2020b). The Congo Basin is home to the world’s second-largest rainforest, most of which is in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The year 2017 set a record for tree-cover loss. About 10% of this loss can be attributed to industrial concessions, suggesting that logging is the greater issue (Ikala et al., 2018). Off-grid solar could improve electricity access The rate of access to electricity is the second-lowest in Southern Africa, despite well-distributed hydropower and solar potential (see Table 19.2). The World Bank notes (2020b) Ambivalence over hydropower megaproject First proposed in 2013, the Grand Inga Dam would constitute the world’s largest hydropower scheme and transform the country into an energy exporter. The project has stalled several times, however. The World Bank withdrew from the project in 2016, citing a lack of transparency and failure to observe international good practices (Warner et al. 2018). It was followed by the South African state-owned company, Eskom, which would purchase much of the electricity produced. The Spanish company Actividades de Construcción y Servicios exited the project in early 2020. Local communities have also raised concerns about the dam’s social and environmental impact, including in relation to biodiversity loss, deforestation and population displacement. As of 2020, no environmental impact assessment had been conducted (Banktrack, 2020). There is presently renewed interest in the project, which is one of the African Union’s flagships (see Table 19.3). A new consortium has been formed, composed of six Chinese companies around the China Three Gorges Corporation, which hold a 75% stake, and the Spanish firm AEE Power Holdings (Takouleu, 2020). First science policy to double research intensity The country’s first science policy, presently in draft form, counts five priority areas: reproductive, child and adolescent health; food security and demographics; improving business productivity and promoting ‘green industries’; sustainable management of natural resources; and building a knowledge society through education and training. It fixes targets of achieving a research intensity of 0.80% of GDP by 2022 and 1% by 2030. In health, the goal is to improve nutrition and reduce HIV infection rates among teenagers and women, as well as to provide universal health care coverage by 2030. Developing agricultural capacity, including through agro-ecology, is expected to reduce dependence on food imports, which presently account for about 80% of consumption. Just 2% of land is dedicated to agriculture. Research infrastructure is outdated and dysfunctional. Nonetheless, Congolese researchers increased their annual scientific output by about 14% on average between 2011 and 2019 (Figure 20.7).21 Between 2016 and 2019, scientists produced just 15 articles on agro-ecology. Southern Africa | 549 Chapter 20 Economy recovering from a cyclone In April 2019, Cyclone Kenneth devastated infrastructure, causing economic growth to dip from 2.8% in 2018 to 1.5%. Ever since, there has been an influx of development aid to support the productive sector and private sector-driven infrastructure projects (AfDB, 2020a). Poverty affects 44.1% of the population. Human and institutional capabilities are weak and almost half the active population lacks qualifications (AfDB, 2020a). One positive trend is the increase in publication intensity from 10 to 22 publications per million inhabitants between 2015 and 2019 (see Figure 19.5). Scientists doubled their output on tropical communicable diseases from 6 to 14 publications between 2012–2015 and 2016–2019 and quadrupled their output to 8 publications on the sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems. Comoros is characterized by poor links to the mainland, vulnerability to climate change and a small domestic market. Comoros’ intraregional trade within East Africa in 2017 accounted for only 0.1 % of the country’s total exports (AfDB, 2019b). There is little diversification of national production and exports consist mainly of ylang ylang, vanilla and cloves. These factors contributed to Comoros ranking higher than the average for least developed countries on the economic vulnerability index in 2018 (UNECA, 2019). that access to electricity will not improve if future efforts match those seen over the last decade. The government has focused on a select few hydropower projects and failed to invest in rehabilitation; 29 hydropower plants, representing 49% of total installed capacity, have not been rehabilitated since they were commissioned. Electricity could reach about one-third of the population by connecting all households in the 26 provincial capitals to the grid. This could be achieved through an estimated US$ 11 billion investment, about 30% of which could come from public investment (World Bank, 2020b). The government will, therefore, need to attract investment which, in turn, will require improving the transparency and stability of the regulatory environment.20 Figure 20.6: Scientific publishing on cross-cutting strategic technologies in sub-Saharan Africa Volume of scientific publications on cross-cutting technologies in sub-Saharan Africa, 2012 and 2019 Publications, 2012 2 018 Publications, 2019 1 539 965 905 485 437 383 193 Energy AI & robotics 219 131 Materials Bioinformatics 168 221 98 50 Strategic, defence Nanotechnology & security Biotechnology 125 55 Opto-electronics & photonics From 2011 to 2019, Nigeria (27%) and South Africa (50%) accounted for the largest shares of publications on cross-cutting strategic technologies in sub-Saharan Africa. Top 15 countries for publication intensity on energy, 2012–2019 Publications per million inhabitants, data labels are for 2016–2019 62.0 Ethiopia’s energy-related research output has tripled from 90 (2012–2015) to 276 (2016–2019) publications. 14.5 0.9 i 0.9 tin Es Pr wa in Be cip ni n e so th o 1.2 Sa oT om e& Zi m Le ba ib Dj Se 1.3 1.5 e an Gh 1.6 ou ti a lle s he ria 2.4 bw 2.6 2.7 Ni ge Ta Na m ib an nz a ia ni a 3.3 yc 4.2 a s Bo tsw M au rit iu ca n oo So ut hA fri er m 2012–2015 13.2 5.4 Ca 2016–2019 Top 15 countries for publication intensity on biotechnology, 2012–2019 Publications per million inhabitants, data labels are for 2016–2019 8.5 2016–2019 2012–2015 550 | UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT Bu hi op ia a ny Ke bi m Ga 0.2 0.2 Et rk in aF bw ba ni 0.2 a 0.2 as o 0.2 e n 0.3 Be a an Gh e Ve rd 0.4 Zi m 0.5 0.5 bo Ni ge ria ti ou ib bo n 0.5 Ca 0.6 Ga na Bo t sw a ia ib m Na 0.8 Dj 1.5 a ric Af ut h So M au rit iu s 2.1 Top 15 countries for publication intensity on AI and robotics, 2012–2019 Publications per million inhabitants, data labels are for 2016–2019 2016–2019 49.5 2012–2015 26.1 0.5 Et 0.4 Be ni n Rw an da 0.5 hi op ia wa t ni a in i ny a 0.6 Es Pr 1.1 Sa o To m e& za in cip e ria ge Ni 1.2 Ke 1.2 1.5 Ta n 1.5 Gh an a al 2.0 Se ne g Bo m ib ia Af th So u 5.5 Na tsw an a ric a us rit i au M 7.4 Four countries collectively contributed over half of sub-Saharan Africa’s total output on AI and robotics over 2012–2019: South Africa (3 774), Nigeria (1 600), Ethiopia (305) and Ghana (231). Ghana showed the highest growth rate in sub-Saharan Africa on AI and robotics, with output tripling from 51 publications over 2012–2015 to 180 over 2016–2019. Top 15 countries for publication intensity on materials science, 2012–2019 Publications per million inhabitants, data labels are for 2016–2019 2016–2019 25.3 2012–2015 17.6 15.7 11.5 5.8 0.6 Bo bw ba tsw an e a ad al ne g oo er m Se a an 0.6 0.7 Zi m 0.7 n 0.8 Ch 1.2 Gh nz an Be ni n ia 1.3 Ca 1.3 Ta Dj ib ou ti a bi 'Iv oi 2.6 Cô te d Af ut h So Za m re a ric pi a io Et h a ny Ke Ni ge ria 3.7 Nigerian and South African researchers contributed 50% and 47%, respectively, of sub-Saharan African publications on materials science in 2019. Ethiopians contributed a further 5% and Botswanans 3%. Output on materials science doubled between 2012–2015 and 2016–2019 in 14 sub-Saharan African countries, led in terms of volume by South Africa with 618 and 1 399 publications over these twin periods. Note: This breakdown takes into account intra-African co-authorship, meaning that some publications may have been counted more than once whenever South African and/ or Nigerian scientists partnered with their peers from other African countries. The growth rate was calculated as the number of publications from 2016–2019 divided by the number of publications from 2012–2015. Note: The four cross-cutting strategic technologies here are part of a wider category that also includes blockchain technology (with only 2 publications from the region in the period under study, both from Kenya) and the Internet of Things (not shown here due to low output). The growth rate was calculated as the number of publications during 2016–2019 divided by the number of publications during 2012–2015 to buffer the variability among individual years. Complete data for all countries can be found in the statistical annex, freely available from the UNESCO Science Report web portal. Source: Scopus (excluding Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences); data treatment by Science-Metrix Southern Africa | 551 Chapter 20 Ca m er oo n 10.2 A digital health agency A combination of mistrust in the health system, limited refrigerated storage capacity for transporting vaccines and restricted access to rural populations resulted in a measles outbreak in 2019. WHO trained more than 60 health professionals from the Ministry of Public Health to strengthen its response on the ground, including in community engagement, health education and epidemiological surveillance (WHO, 2020b). In August 2018, an outbreak of Ebola was declared, infecting about 3 500 people. The virus proved fatal in about two-thirds of cases, making it the second-largest outbreak of the disease. A vaccine was rolled out to more than 300 000 people, 80% of whom did not contract the disease. The director of Kinshasa’s National Institute for Biomedical Research praised local leadership, which mobilized resources to respond. In June 2020, the government and WHO declared the virus eliminated (Maxmen, 2020). In March 2019, the government launched the National Agency of Clinical Information and Health Informatics Engineering, billed as the country’s first digital health agency. Through social media accounts, this agency has provided regular updates on the status of Covid-19 in the country. The agency is also responsible for accelerating the use of telemedicine. To mark the launch of this agency, a hackathon was held to explore digital solutions to the Ebola epidemic. A team of seven students won the competition with their Lokole app, designed to support the Ebola Response Coordination Team and community workers through real-time data exchange. The app did not require a smartphone or stable Internet connection. Their prize included three months of mentoring and coaching at the tech incubator Ingenious City in Kinshasa. ESWATINI A strategy to end AIDS Eswatini, known as Swaziland prior to April 2018, has abundant mineral resources. It also records one of the highest annual rates of rainfall in the SADC region. Eswatini depends on South Africa for the lion’s share of its intra-Africa trade: 95% of its imports and 74% of exports in 2018 (Tralac, 2019). Eswatini has the world’s highest HIV prevalence rate, estimated by UNAIDS at around 27% of the population in 2018. The incidence of tuberculosis is also high, putting severe pressure on the country’s public health budget. The National Strategic Plan for Ending AIDS and Syphilis in Children 2018–2023 (2018) aims to eliminate the mother-to-child transmission of HIV and congenital syphilis by 2023. Scientists have doubled their output on HIV from 50 (2012–2015) to 110 (2016–2019) publications, according to the UNESCO study. This corresponds to 39 times the average global intensity on this research topic. A risk of overrreliance on energy imports Access to electricity rose by nearly 10% over 2015–2018, up to 76.5% of the population (see Table 19.2). The National 552 | UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT Development Strategy 2022 (1999) had set the target of achieving full access by 2022. Nearly all of Eswatini’s installed electricity capacity was classed as renewable in 2019 (94%), most of which came from bio-energy (59%), according to IRENA. The majority of households rely on fuelwood for cooking and heating (Govt of Eswatini, 2018). In 2016, the government launched the Energy Planning Capacity-Building Programme with IRENA. This culminated in the release of the Energy Masterplan 2034 (2018), which strives for a diversified energy mix to support industrialization. The plan forecasts that, due to a slow injection of funds in rural electrification, the target for electrification will not be reached by 2030. It projects that total national electricity demand will rise by 113% over 2014–2034 but that, under a business-as-usual scenario, dependency on fuel and electricity imports will remain high and domestic renewable resources underutilized.22 Greater protection of consumer data With three in ten citizens now having access to Internet (see Table 19.2), parliament has adopted legislation to criminalize cyberoffences, the Computer Crime and Cybercrime Bill (2017). It is accompanied by a Data Protection Bill (2017) governing the collection, use, disclosure and care of personal data and an Electronic Communications and Transactions Bill (2017) to regulate and facilitate the use of e-government services and ensure consumer protection. National Research Council to be revived Challenges faced by the national innovation system include a lack of incentives to innovate, relatively poor data accessibility and dissemination, an uncertain policy regime and weak linkages between public R&D, the higher education sector and the economy. In 2015, the Department of Research, Science, Technology and Innovation (est. 2014) launched a review of the National Science, Technology and Innovation Policy dating from 2012. The department has since commissioned a new policy which will prioritize innovation and research in agriculture, manufacturing, energy and health. In 2020, the Ministry of Information, Communication and Technology developed the National Research Bill to resuscitate the now defunct National Research Council, first created in 1972. This council will have a mandate to co-ordinate and fund research and innovation. In 2018, legislation was passed to establish an intellectual property tribunal. However, as of September 2019, the act had not been followed by a decree of application (Motsa and Magagula, 2019). Launch of Academy of Science The Eswatini Academy of Science was launched in 2018, a year after the government drafted the academy’s constitution with the assistance of the Academy of Science of South Africa. In 2019, the academy signed memoranda of understanding with Kenya, Mozambique and South Africa to boost scientific co-operation. LESOTHO Rethinking its development model Lesotho’s National Strategic Development Plan 2019–2023 (2019) is the main policy framework and the final mid-term strategy for Vision 2020 (2000). The central objective of creating employment opportunities and making economic growth more inclusive reflects Lesotho’s chronic high unemployment (32.8% in 2017) and poverty rates; about 28% of the population lived beneath the bread line in 2017, according to government estimates. These challenges persist, despite a growth rate of 3–5% over 2011–2016 (Figure 20.1). The government notes in the plan that the situation ‘calls for a rethinking of the country’s growth and development model to increase its inclusiveness.’ The government considers that implementation of the National Strategic Development Plan 2013–2017 was impeded by political uncertainty, institutional fragmentation and weak links with the actual spending pattern. Implementation of the present plan is intended to take these barriers into account. A key objective is to shift from a consumer-driven to a production- and export-driven economy, by focusing on four sectors: manufacturing; tourism and creative industries; agriculture; and technology and innovation. The manufacturing sector is presently dominated by textiles, garments and footwear exports. The National Strategic Development Plan 2019–2023 foresees developing an incubation framework to support start-ups through financial support and R&D. The strategy also anticipates establishing sector-specific incubation centres targeting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), such as in banking, manufacturing and agriculture. In 2018, the National University of Lesotho established an innovation hub to promote innovation and incubate innovative firms, with a view to stimulating job creation. The innovation hub has received M 1 million (ca US$ 1 300) from Metropolitan Lesotho to secure space and purchase equipment. Inclusive education a priority One aim of the National Strategic Development Plan is to offer scientists and engineers greater support, especially women. In 2015, one-third (36%) of researchers were women. They dominated agricultural research (70%) but were contributing little to engineering (10%). Among tertiary graduates, women have achieved parity in natural sciences and agriculture but remain a minority in engineering (18%) and ICTs (31%) [see chapter 3]. The National Strategic Development Plan also prioritizes digital skills training in schools. There are synergies with the Lesotho Inclusive Education Policy (2019), which foresees adapting the curriculum to cater to diverse needs and foster skills development, while expanding technical and vocational education and training. Another aim of the National Strategic Development Plan is to promote research into drought-tolerant crops. This is not a topic on which scientists from Lesotho published in international journals between 2011 and 2019, according to a UNESCO study of climate-ready crops and 55 other research topics (Figure 20.7). GERD amounted to just 0.05% of GDP in 2015 (Figure 20.4). There now seems to be the political will to update the languishing Lesotho Science and Technology Policy covering 2006–2011, which has not been implemented for lack of enactment of the proposed Science and Technology Bill; this bill had envisioned creating a Science and Technology Commission to oversee policy implementation and an Innovation Fund. In 2020, the Department of Science and Technology was in the process of drafting a standalone Research and Innovation Policy. Renewables to advance electricity access According to the government’s Electrification Master Plan 2018–2028 (2018), eight-tenths of the annual public budget for electrification (M 150 million, ca US$ 11 million) is to be allocated to expanding the grid and the remainder to off-grid electrification using renewable energy. The draft Off-Grid Master Plan 2017–2036 found solar photovoltaic to be the most suitable option for off-grid electrification (Fernandez, 2018). By 2018, 47% of the population had access to electricity (Table 19.2), up from 39% the previous year (MEM et al., 2019). Building capacity in renewable energy production is recognized by the National Strategic Development Plan 2019–2023 and Energy Policy 2015–2025 (2015) as having the potential to support job creation and catalyse privatesector investment. However, as of December 2019, the draft Regulatory Framework for Renewable Energy had not yet been approved at cabinet level. A mid-term review concluded that ‘in the absence of clear policy guidelines and a regulatory framework to promote private-sector participation in energy service delivery for both grid- and off-grid services, the private sector has been reluctant to invest’ (MEM et al., 2019). Access to digital services falling behind infrastructure The World Bank’s Lesotho Digital Economy Diagnostic (2019) found ‘significant potential’ but observed that only about one-third of the population was using Internet regularly, despite almost the entire territory being covered by a 3G Southern Africa | 553 Chapter 20 Science park stimulating innovation The Royal Science and Technology Park Act (2012) creating the eponymous park was revised in 2019. In addition to promoting research and innovation, the Royal Science and Technology Park serves as a special economic zone; enterprises operating in the park must adhere to a quota by employing a minimum of two-thirds Eswatini citizens. The complex hosts a Biotechnology Park consisting of a research centre and incubation facility. Focus areas include: agriculture, plant and animal biotechnology; environment and biodiversity; medical biotechnology; and biofuels and biochemicals. The complex also hosts an Innovation Park comprising a non-profit business incubation centre, the National Data Centre and the Advanced School of Information Technology, affiliated with an international training provider. The business incubator launched a call for proposals in September 2020 relating to ICTs, electronics and value-added agriculture, among other areas.23 network in 2018. Demand for digital financial services, however, has been strong, with consumers reportedly eager to benefit from services such as e-payments. Legislation is needed to strengthen the regulatory environment for cybersecurity and e-transactions (World Bank, 2020c). Another obstacle is the lack of competition in the broadband market, which has pushed up costs and slowed uptake by both businesses and consumers. Information and communication technologies (ICTs) are also being underutilized by the public sector, with inadequate interoperability between systems (World Bank, 2020c). Since 2013, the e-Government Infrastructure Project funded by the AfDB has been strengthening data centres and portals and improving access to online services like procurement. Service centres connected to Internet have been established in several communities. MADAGASCAR Covid-19 threatening development agenda The primary objective of the National Development Plan for 2015–2019 was to reduce poverty through inclusive growth. This programme was replaced by Madagascar’s Emergency Initiative for 2019–2021, which has three pillars: to improve basic social services, strengthen governance and democracy and foster economic growth. Madagascar managed to maintain annual growth of at least 4% over 2016–2019 and reduce poverty levels, thanks to an ambitious economic reform programme, coupled with a peaceful transfer of power in 2019 which helped restore investor confidence (Figure 20.1; World Bank, 2020d). These gains have been jeopardized by the Covid-19 pandemic (World Bank, 2020d). For instance, smallholder Madagascan farmers grow about 80% of the world’s vanilla. Global prices for vanilla had risen tenfold over 2015–2019, driven by strong global demand and a shrinking supply linked to climate change, before falling in 2020 (Steavenson, 2019). By May 2020, Madagascar had lost about US$ 500 million in tourism revenue, as a consequence of travel restrictions linked to the Covid-19 pandemic. Revenue from tourism contributes to conservation efforts. For instance, this has translated into a loss of at least € 20 000 in revenue for the at-risk Menabe Antimena protected area, home to unique dry forest and baobab trees. One of the founders of Ranomafana National Park has warned that, without the US$ 4 million that usually flows into the region from tourism and research, the community ‘will be forced to return to cutting the forest and farming’ (Vyawaare, 2020a). The country’s rich ecosystems are still under threat from rapid deforestation and other forms of land degradation. In recognition of its efforts to restore Lake Andranobe, the community-led organization Tatamo Miray an’Andranobe won the UNDP's 2020 Equator Prize in the ‘nature for water’ category. This organization formed in 2004 when the lake’s fish stocks were dropping and the watershed shrinking. After enforcing fishery closures and regulating water uptake, fish catches more than doubled over 2014–2019. Villagers planted 200 000 saplings in 2020, in an effort to reduce silting (Vyawaare, 2020b). 554 | UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT E-governance to improve public services E-governance is being explored as a means of improving the poor delivery of public services. Accessing public services is currently a long, arduous process conducted in person. The interoperability between government systems and datasets adds to inefficiencies, according to the World Bank’s Digital Governance and Identification Management System Project document (see endnote 7) . As of October 2020, Madagascar has the second-fastest fixed broadband Internet service in Africa after Ghana. This has been achieved by connecting to the East African Submarine Cable System in 2010. Few can afford to access Internet, however (see Table 19.2). A National Fund for Sustainable Energy Poor access to an unreliable power supply continues to impede the provision of basic services and development of the private sector.24 In its New Energy Policy 2015–2030 (2015), the government has set the target of 70% of the population having access to electricity by 2030, compared to 26% in 2018 and 20% in 2015. The private sector will be encouraged to develop renewable energy sources. A reform to the electricity code in 2017 created the independent National Fund for Sustainable Energy to support projects in rural and peri-urban areas. An effort has been under way since 2016 to improve the operational performance of JIRAMA, the public water and electricity utility. Funded by the World Bank to the tune of US$ 65 million, the six-year project has, thus far, reduced electricity losses in targeted areas and installed a Management Information System to conduct monitoring and reporting. MALAWI National planning prioritizing agriculture Poverty and food insecurity remain acute challenges in Malawi (Figure 20.1; see Table 19.1). Episodes of drought and flooding in the 2015/2016 agricultural season led to the declaration of a State of Disaster. Malawi has, thus, given priority to developing its agricultural sector, which accounts for about 26% of GDP (Figure 20.1). The National Science and Technology Policy (1991; revised 2002) has not been fully implemented (Mbula-Kraemer and Scerri, 2015). An updated version was expected in 2020 but its release may have been delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic. The Malawi Growth and Development Strategy identifies five key priority areas: agriculture, water and climate change management; education and skills development; energy, industry and tourism development; transport and ICT infrastructure; and health and population. According to the strategy, the agricultural sector accounts for more than 80% of national export earnings and employs 64% of the workforce. To address challenges related to climate change, land degradation and insufficient irrigation, the strategy identifies climate-smart agriculture and integrated soil fertility management as potential solutions. The impact of climate change on agriculture is a particular concern. Between 2013 and 2018, the Governments of Hydropower to boost energy production Biomass accounts for about nine-tenths of energy production. With domestic electricity production (351 MW) satisfying only about half of energy needs, the Malawi Growth and Development Strategy advocates public–private partnerships to boost private-sector investment in energy (Govt of Malawi, 2017). In August 2020, the NCST launched a trilateral call for collaborative research proposals in renewable energy with Zambia and Mozambique, with a focus on renewable energy efficiency, feed-in tariffs and the sustainability and management of renewable energy systems. Successful proposals will receive a maximum of K 22.6 million (ca US$ 30 000). The National Intellectual Property Policy (2019) has established an autonomous agency for administration and management and conducted a review of patent, copyright and design legislation. Another aim is to raise awareness of intellectual property at the secondary and tertiary levels of education. The policy also recognizes the need to build the national innovation system, through innovation centres and support structures for SMEs, as well as incentives and funding for innovative activity (Suliman, 2019). Hydropower is expected to contribute an additional 200 MW to the electricity grid by 2024, through the planned Kholombidzo Hydropower Generation Project, which could be commissioned as early as 2021. Feasibility studies have also been conducted for the proposed Mpatamanga Power Station, which would add an additional 350 MW installed capacity from hydropower. The total cost is estimated at US$ 1.07 billion, of which the World Bank’s International Development Association is expected to allocate US$ 350 million. Foundations for a digitally enabled economy The Malawi Growth and Development Strategy acknowledges that network availability remains intermittent and costly for the population. It prioritizes the development of public online services and a network of community information centres connected to the Internet, as well as the integration of ICTs into core sectoral policies. Under the National Fibre Backbone project, optical fibre was laid across the country’s 28 districts over 2017–2018, to improve connectivity and integrate government operating systems such as the Integrated Financial Management and Information System and the Human Resource Management Information System. Implemented by the Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi together with the Chinese multinational Huawei, the project was financed via a soft loan of about US$ 23 million from the China Exim Bank (Malakata, 2018). In 2017, the government launched the Digital Malawi project. Funded by the World Bank to the tune of US$ 72 million, it is striving to improve access to affordable Internet services (digital connectivity) and roll out e-government services (digital platform for services). There will also be an institutional review (digital ecosystems). By June 2019, the Digital Malawi project had supported the development of telecommunications regulations, to implement the Communications Act (2016) and e-Transactions Act (2016). As of June 2020, the project has provided grants worth US$ 2 million, enabling tech and innovation hubs to enlarge their activities and train youth in digital skills. The project has also received approval to finance a national data centre.25 The Digital Malawi project has informed the Digital Government Strategy (2018), which recommends establishing innovation hubs, as well as a centre dedicated to research and innovation in ICTs within the National College of Information Technology. As of 2020, there are an estimated six active innovation hubs in Malawi (Figure 20.2). One example is MHub, which has incubated more than 40 start-ups and organized business clinics and coaching for about 20 000 budding entrepreneurs, with a focus on women and youth. In November 2019, Malawi began phasing out machinereadable passports in favour of biometric ones that meet the standards of the International Civil Aviation Organization (MBC, 2019). In 2019, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation launched Malawi’s first Diaspora Portal. Hosted by the NCST, the portal provides an online platform to support engagement with highly skilled Malawians abroad, including scientists and entrepreneurs. Southern Africa | 555 Chapter 20 Norway and Malawi implemented an initiative entitled Capacity Building for Managing Climate Change in Malawi, which sought to boost national research capacity and outreach, especially in the agricultural sector; the scheme provided research grants and scholarships, as well as subsidized farm inputs and livestock. According to a UNESCO study, scientific output on climateready crops has risen from 5 (2012–2015) to 18 (2016–2019) publications and, on agro-ecology, from 22 to 46 publications. Seventeen years after the government approved the creation of a National Science and Technology Fund to sponsor high-quality research, in the National Science and Technology Act (2003), the fund is not yet operational. According to the National Commission for Science and Technology (NCST), a US$ 22 million investment plan covering the 2018–2023 period is directing resources towards research management, skills and infrastructure development and climate change management. Skills development in science and engineering is a focus of the Malawi Growth and Development Strategy, along with entrepreneurship. The government also intends to link training institutions with enterprises to ensure that skills development matches needs. Other strategies include reducing class sizes and providing students with targeted scholarships and loans. Malawi invests less per capita in the health sector than any other SADC country, at about US$ 39 in 2017, compared to the regional average of US$ 229. Measures set out in the Malawi Growth and Development Strategy include expanding primary and reproductive health care programmes, raising the national budget allocations for health and building upon partnerships with donor agencies (Govt of Malawi, 2017). Output on reproductive health and neonatology surged from 107 (2012–2015) to 253 (2016–2019) publications, according to a UNESCO study. Figure 20.7: Trends in scientific publishing in Southern Africa Volume of scientific publications in Southern Africa, 2011–2019 21 062 South Africa 14 706 10 669 CHANGE OF SCALE 1 736 Tanzania 1 173 811 760 Zimbabwe 713 Malawi 627 Botswana 573 Zambia 459 447 290 320 263 263 190 148 94 Namibia Madagascar Eswatini Angola Lesotho Seychelles Comoros 460 Mozambique 435 Mauritius 409 Congo, Dem. Rep. 404 300 300 294 178 2011 129 231 47 50 27 35 11 2012 152 238 43 65 31 34 5 2013 193 265 48 62 28 46 18 2014 226 262 42 87 26 41 5 2015 259 292 55 84 34 59 8 2016 279 276 64 100 29 43 18 2017 292 326 81 134 35 54 12 2018 346 323 99 94 43 48 19 2019 381 341 116 114 60 52 19 Scientific publications in Southern Africa by broad field of science, 2017–2019 (%) 8 Angola Botswana 11 4 5 1 4 8 Comoros Eswatini 3 Lesotho 4 10 7 8 11 4 Malawi 6 Mauritius 5 10 5 7 9 South Africa 4 Tanzania 9 Zambia 9 11 Zimbabwe 7 1 4 2 0% Agriculture, fisheries & forestry 54 8 10 14 7 10% 4 44 2 2 5 5 12 11 16 11 10 7 Animal & plant biology 20 8 25 2 11 9 42 2 35 2 7 10 57 3 1 66 8 30% 10 21 1 1 7 20% 5 23 8 3 3 2 6 61 6 Environmental sciences (excl. geosciences) 556 | UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT 5 6 4 3 12 11 11 9 77 5 7 5 6 11 52 26 2 1 7 2 64 3 2 21 7 8 38 1 1 4 1 36 14 2 12 Seychelles 43 3 6 12 7 8 3 1 3 1 11 Namibia 6 10 1 3 1 8 Mozambique 8 19 4 7 13 6 3 2 8 7 4 10 8 4 6 Madagascar 11 12 7 Congo, Dem. Rep. 4 21 13 40% 46 50% Built environment & design Geosciences 60% Chemistry Health sciences 70% 3 1 80% 90% Cross-cutting strategic technologies ICTs, maths & statistics 100% Engineering Physics & astronomy 1.25 Average citation rate for South Africa, the most prolific publisher in Southern Africa, over 2014–2016; the G20 average was 1.02. 85% Mauritius (63%) and South Africa (56%) have a much lower share of foreign co-authorship than their Southern African neighbours. Scientific publications per million inhabitants in Southern Africa, 2011, 2015 and 2019 Data labels are for 2019 2019 2015 2011 532 343 For details, see chapter 2 272 153 101 5 la ep .R m Co ng o, M ad De An ca as ag 4 . r e bi oz am m M Co 13 go 15 os or th Le so an nz Ta 22 o ia a bi m 28 qu 30 32 Za wi ala M Zi m ba bw tin wa Es 38 e i ia ib Na an tsw Bo m s rit au M ut hA fri iu ca s lle he So yc Se a 52 All but Angola, Madagascar and South Africa count at least one other African country among their closest partners. Top five partners for Southern Africa for scientific co-authorship, 2017–2019 (number of papers) 1st collaborator 2nd collaborator 3rd collaborator 4th collaborator(s) Angola Portugal (123) USA (64) Brazil (57) Spain (40) 5th collaborator(s) Germany (35) Botswana South Africa (510) USA (488) UK (254) India (129) Zimbabwe (111) Italy/Morocco (6) Comoros France (21) Madagascar (10) China (9) Congo, Dem. Rep. USA (390) Belgium (375) France (193) UK (173) South Africa (135) Eswatini South Africa (155) USA (107) UK (36) Switzerland (35) Germany (25) Botswana/Uganda (8) Lesotho South Africa (55) USA (47) Switzerland (13) Malawi (10) Madagascar USA (337) France (326) UK (192) Germany (159) Italy (76) Malawi USA (892) UK (743) South Africa (369) Kenya (193) Uganda (167) Mauritius Turkey (135) South Africa (129) UK (113) India (109) Italy (101) Mozambique USA (372) Spain (235) South Africa (233) UK (226) Brazil (221) Namibia South Africa (451) USA (229) UK (190) Germany (182) Australia (118) Seychelles UK (68) USA (64) France (40) Australia/South Africa (35) South Africa USA (10 110) UK (7 474) Australia (4 173) Germany (4 155) France (3 262) Tanzania USA (1 439) UK (913) South Africa (508) Kenya (487) Germany (437) Zambia USA (752) UK (424) South Africa (390) Kenya (183) Uganda (147) Zimbabwe South Africa (865) USA (513) UK (438) Uganda (156) Kenya (141) Source: Scopus (excluding Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences); data treatment by Science-Metrix Southern Africa | 557 Chapter 20 Southern African countries are publishing more on the following topics than would be expected, relative to global averages: help for smallholder food producers (Zimbabwe’s output was 217 times the global average intensity), HIV research, medicines and vaccines for tuberculosis, tropical communicable diseases and traditional knowledge. One growth area for South Africa has concerned the local impact of climate-related hazards: from 20 (2012–2105) to 95 (2016–2019) publications. On the topic of climate-ready crops, rapid growth has been observed in Malawi (5/18 publications), Mozambique (2/9), South Africa (26/109), Tanzania (5/24), Zambia (12/27) and Zimbabwe (11/42). All 16 countries in the region published at least three times the average intensity on the sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, with output at least doubling in five countries, namely Angola (12/23), Botswana (78/180), Eritrea (4/12), Lesotho (2/7) and Mozambique (35/105). With regard to renewable sources of energy, Mauritian scientists have boosted output on biofuels and biomass (12/31), as well as hydrogen energy (2/15). Hydropower has been the focus for Zambians (6/15) and Zimbabweans (13/24) and smart-grid technologies (5/21) for Tanzanians. South Africa’s output has surged on wind-turbine (142/297) and smartgrid technologies (177/373), as well as on photovoltaics (124/339). It remains to be seen whether the scientific components of the SADC Regional Climate Change Programme will boost academic publishing by local researchers. Average share of publications with foreign co-authors in Southern Africa, 2017–2019 (%) 360 SDGs How has output on SDG-related topics evolved since 2012? MAURITIUS A high-tech industry in electrical equipment The Mauritian economy has been expanding at a consistent rate of 3–4% since 2009, driven mainly by the construction and ICT sectors, as well as financial services (Figure 20.1) [AfDB, 2019a, p. 164]. One policy goal is to transform Mauritius into a regional transshipment hub and financial gateway into Africa. Thanks to growing logistics and distribution networks, Mauritius already hosts a number of multinational companies seeking to expand their presence in Africa. It is the only country in the SADC region besides South Africa to have developed a hightech industry in electrical equipment. High-tech industries do exist in other SADC countries but largely in the chemicals sector (SADC, 2019; Lawless, 2019). Support for tech-based SMEs SMEs accounted for about one-half of employment and onethird of GDP in 2018. In 2017, two schemes involving a public– private partnership were introduced, an SME Innovation Award and a National SME Incubator Scheme for start-ups (Rep. Mauritius, 2019). To address the mismatch between skills and market needs, the government introduced a Graduate Training for Employment Scheme in 2015, which provides unemployed graduates with practical training, a monthly stipend and a work placement. By February 2020, 86 employers had participated in the programme and 469 young people had been trained (Peryagh, 2020). A Research and Innovation Council and fund In May 2019, an act of parliament established the Mauritius Research and Innovation Council and the National Research and Innovation Fund.26 In January 2020, the council signed a collaboration agreement with the Technology Innovation Agency of South Africa. The partners then released a call for research proposals focusing on ‘real-world solutions’ in the following broad areas: the green and blue economies; smart agriculture and life sciences; manufacturing; social innovation; and emerging sectors. Advances in electric transportation As in other African countries, infrastructure development is a priority. Designed to alleviate traffic congestion, the electric Metro Express Light Rail system will, ultimately, stretch for 26 km and connect five major towns. The first phase got underway in December 2020 (Rep. Mauritius, 2019). A fleet of 30 electric buses is also planned, in order to connect the rail system to residential neighbourhoods (GEF, 2019). The government has been encouraging the private sector to gear investment towards green projects. For instance, construction of Plaisance Eco-City got underway in 2019, for a total estimated cost of MUR 4 billion (ca US$ 100 million). This eco-city sporting apartments, a business park and hotel, will, reportedly, be self-sufficient in wind and solar energy. 558 | UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT By 2018, 33 electric cars and 3 587 hybrid cars were navigating Mauritian roads, a near three-fold increase on both counts since 2016. The number of registered hybrid cars has doubled since the removal of excise duties on electric cars of up to 180 kW. Efforts to ensure ocean sustainability The government maintains that around 2.15% of the country’s GDP is invested annually in climate adaptation and mitigation measures. Mauritius has pledged to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 30% by 2030, compared to the business-as-usual scenario, invoking multiple schemes that promote renewable energy and low-carbon consumption practices, such as re-use and recycling. One target is to increase the share of renewables in total energy consumption to 35% by 2025 (Rep. Mauritius, 2019). However, this indicator has actually declined from 11.5% in 2015 to 9.7% in 2017, according to the International Energy Agency. Meanwhile, the Oceanic Carbonate Chemistry Observatory (est. 2017) has been monitoring marine pollution, ocean acidification and marine debris. Mauritius participates in the Global Ocean Acidification Observing Network alongside over 90 countries (Rep. Mauritius, 2019). In July 2020, the oil carrier Wakashio ran aground in the Indian Ocean near Esny, in southeast Mauritius, causing an ecological emergency. As of November 2020, 1 000 tons of oil had spilled into the ocean, threatening endangered corals and other marine life. Following a clean-up operation, media outlets have reported that all the oil floating on the ocean has been recovered and that all traces of it along the coastline should have been removed by January 2021 (Reuters, 2020). Advances in AI and data protection The Artificial Intelligence Strategy released in November 2018 formally recognizes the potential of AI, the Internet of Things and blockchain for development. The strategy identifies: uses for AI in health care, to support the diagnosis of disease and care for the elderly; in fintech, to support mobile apps, e-banking and other digital platforms; and in agriculture, as a tool for crop and pest management, as well as precision farming. The government has since set up the Mauritius Artificial Intelligence Council, which has been mandated to establish an AI roadmap, facilitate project implementation and monitor the socio-economic impact of AI. In 2018, the Financial Services Commission of Mauritius issued guidance with regard to investing in digital assets like cryptocurrencies (FSC, 2019). Mauritius’ Data Protection Act came into force in January 2017. Designed to improve individuals’ control over their personal data, it is in line with the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation. For instance, data can only be collected and processed whenever there is a defined purpose and individuals have a right to access their data, rectify or restrict its processing and to object to its collection (Deloitte, 2019). Coding for kids In education, the government is promoting introductory courses on coding at the primary level. The Digital Youth Engagement Programme provides fourth-year primary school pupils with 15 hours of classes on coding; in 2018, two mobile caravans toured Mauritius to teach coding to about 2 000 pupils from 20 primary schools (Rep. Mauritius, 2019). MOZAMBIQUE A ‘period of change’ on the horizon Mozambique is set to become a top-ten global supplier of liquefied natural gas, following the discovery of vast gas reserves in the ultra-deepwater Rovuma Basin in 2010 and 2011. Two plants are being constructed at two offshore blocks known as Area 1 and Area 4, where production is expected to begin in 2024 and 2022, respectively (Goodrich, 2020b). These projects have the potential to create a value chain for fertilisers as well as gas-to-liquid and gas-to-power industries in Mozambique. According to the Mozambique Liquid Natural Gas project’s own estimates, 557 households will be displaced to make way for the Area 1 plant. There are also concerns about the impact on biodiversity in the nearby Quirimbas Archipelago, a UNESCO biosphere reserve home to 3 000 floral species and 447 bird species (Rawoot, 2020). There is a high inflow of foreign direct investment (FDI) into Mozambique (see Table 19.1), although the level has dipped since 2015 when it contributed as much as 24% of GDP. The impact of mega-investment from abroad on the country’s power, gas and mining sectors has, nevertheless, ‘fallen short of expectations’, with the extractive industry creating no more than 1.1% of jobs in 2018. In addition, local communities and industry have not benefited from the high level of FDI, a trend explained by companies’ lack of competitiveness, the poor infrastructural network, the small size of the formal economy and the predominance of micro-enterprises and SMEs (Rep. Mozambique, 2020). The government forecasts ‘a period of change’ ahead for Mozambique, led predominantly by revenue from extractive industries. For the government, this ‘can contribute to transforming the economy by allowing diversification of investment [...] and substantial social investments in health and education.’ Agro-processing, fruit- and vegetable-growing and other tradable industries are considered to have the potential to boost the country’s international competitiveness (Rep. Mozambique, 2020). Mozambique’s National Research Foundation was one of the first to join the Science Granting Council Initiative in 2016. Within this initiative, Mozambique has participated in collaborative projects with Zimbabwe, Malawi and Namibia. For instance, in co-ordination with Namibia’s National Commission on Research, Science and Technology, the National Research Foundation has launched a bilateral call for collaborative research in agriculture, with a focus on agroprocessing. National electrification In 2018, 31% of the population had access to electricity (see Table 19.2), some way from the 55% target set by the Five-Year Plan for 2015–2019. Launched in November 2018, Mozambique’s National Energy for All Programme targets full access to electricity by 2030. Presently, the electricity grid reaches all 154 districts but many households and businesses are not connected. The project is extending distribution lines and networks to harness existing infrastructure and economies of scale. A geospatial planning tool will be employed to expand the network optimally.27 The share of modern renewables (excluding traditional wood-burning) in Mozambique’s energy mix rose by 11.3% over 2014–2017 (Figure 20.1), even though wood remains the major source of domestic energy: biofuels and waste accounted for 66.4% of Mozambique’s total energy supply in 2018, according to the International Energy Agency. Mobile services more competitive In 2014, Mozambique became the first SADC country to join the Alliance for Affordable Internet (A4AI) and the third developing country, after Nigeria and Ghana, to sign a memorandum of understanding with the Alliance. The price of mobile Internet is declining28 and mobile services have also become more affordable since the arrival of a third operator in 2012 created a more competitive environment (RICTA, 2019). Internet penetration is low but has more than doubled since 2014 (9.2%) [see Table 19.2]. In June 2016, the Telecommunications Act established rules to ensure fair competition, in order to promote the sharing of infrastructure among telecom operators, reduce duplication of investment and increase coverage of rural areas (MoTC, 2017). R&D surveys provide valuable insights Mozambique has conducted seven R&D surveys29 since 2008, plus two innovation surveys, the second of which covered the period 2013–2015 (UNESCO, forthcoming). Research intensity has remained stable at about 0.34% of GDP (Figure 20.4), with 40% coming from foreign sources (UNESCO, forthcoming). Southern Africa | 559 Chapter 20 E-governance a priority In 2018, the government introduced the Info-Highway project, which makes secure data-sharing possible among government agencies and provides robust e-services. Mauritius’ Digital Government Transformation Strategy 2018–2022 (2018) sets out the government’s approach to e-governance and cybersecurity (Rep. Mauritius, 2019). It outlines a ‘once-only principle’, according to which data from citizens are to be collected only once, rather than through multiple state agencies. Digital paper services are to be delivered through an end-to-end, paperless, one-stop process. Infrastructure to support the digital economy is also advancing. In February 2019, a submarine cable linking the island of Rodrigues with the mainland was inaugurated, thereby connecting Rodrigues with the rest of the world (Rep. Mauritius, 2019). Investment in health and biomedical sciences is more than four times that in natural sciences and engineering. As of 2016, the social sciences, arts and humanities accounted for the largest share of researchers (1 145 by head count), compared to just 96 researchers in engineering and technology (UNESCO, forthcoming). Although the requisite public institutions, intermediaries and actors for a functioning national innovation system are present in Mozambique, linkages between these actors remain weak and the private sector is engaging mainly in incremental innovation, rather than in R&D (UNESCO, forthcoming). The Strategic and Human Resources Development Plan for Science and Technology (2006), which is yet to be updated, discussed the need to close the gender gap. By 2018, women accounted for 45.2% of students enrolled in tertiary programmes, up from 41.8% in 2014. NAMIBIA A water crisis prioritizes better practices With the economy dependent on mining, the fall in commodity prices plunged Namibia into recession in 2016 (Figure 20.1). Drought has since compounded the economic slowdown (World Bank, 2020e). The 2018/2019 rainy season was one of the driest since 1981, leading to a national water crisis. Namibia’s Water Sector Support Programme has been one response to the crisis. It aims to provide the population with access to sustainable water and sanitation services. A central objective has been to market sanitation and bring about behavioural change. The programme is also building and rehabilitating bulk water infrastructure and climate-resilient sanitation facilities. In March 2020, the AfDB provided a US$ 122 million loan to support the programme, which is due to wind up in 2024. Industrialization slow despite policy focus Namibia’s Vision 2030 (2004) has steered policy towards the goal of a prosperous and industrialized Namibia. However, as of 2019, manufacturing and wider industry accounted for roughly the same share of the economy as they did in 2004 (Figure 20.1). Economic diversification has been constrained by the small size of the skilled labour force and domestic market, as well as the lack of innovation. The AfDB (2020b), nevertheless, notes the potential for industrialization, given the country’s wealth of natural resources and expected revenue from oil and gas exploration. The new container terminal and cruise facility at Walvis Bay has doubled the port’s handling capacity and brought the government a step closer towards its ambition of turning Namibia into a logistics hub. Funded by the AfDB for US$ 268 million and built by the China Harbour Engineering Company, the new terminal was inaugurated in 2019. The Fifth National Development Plan (2017) translates Vision 2030 into concrete strategies and plans for the period 2017– 2022. The plan has four strategic goals: inclusive, sustainable and equitable growth; healthy and capable human resources; 560 | UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT a sustainable environment and enhanced resilience; and good governance through effective institutions. It sets a target of devoting 1% of GDP to R&D by 2022. Only about half of the population has access to electricity (see Table 19.2) and, as of 2017, 82% of the primary energy supply was imported, according to IRENA. By 2023, the Fifth National Development Plan aims to ensure that two-thirds of the population (67.5%) has access to electricity. A centre for incubation and innovation Namibia faces a growing skills mismatch and uncompetitive business environment (World Bank, 2020e). The number of patents granted to Namibian inventors has fallen since 2017 (Figure 20.3). The National Policy on Micro-, Small and Medium Enterprises in Namibia covering 2016–2021 aims to institute an enabling business environment for Namibian micro-enterprises and SMEs. The Start-up Namibia programme is being funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) over 2019–2022. The project is building an Incubation and Innovation Centre in Windhoek which will serve as a one-stop-shop for start-ups through their ideation, establishment and growth phases. The centre will also help start-ups to access finance, host training courses and publicize Namibian success stories. It will host mobile outreach units to bring its services to start-ups across the country. The Start-up Namibia programme is also providing initial capital and growth financing to the winners of the National Innovation Challenge for Women, which has accelerated more than 100 female entrepreneurs since its inception in 2017. Streamlining intellectual property management The Business and Intellectual Property Authority (est. 2016) has helped to improve the business climate by streamlining processes such as business registration and the administration of commercial and industrial property rights, which had previously been fragmented. It also provides advisory services in these areas. Moreover, after an Intellectual Property Assessment Study (2016) found that intellectual property was insufficiently integrated into national planning, that the policy and management framework was inadequate and that intellectual assets were not being adequately protected, the Business and Intellectual Property Authority sought to remedy this through the National Intellectual Property Policy and Strategy 2019–2024. This strategy proposes establishing a co-ordination committee to link the Business and Intellectual Property Authority with other bodies; enacting a law on ownership and exploitation of research results generated using public resources; amending existing laws to meet international requirements; and generating greater intellectual property with a focus on needs-oriented research. The Business and Intellectual Property Authority has pledged to oversee implementation of the strategy, monitor and evaluate its impact and ensure policy coherence with national and sectoral policies. A boost for tech entrepreneurship Over 2017–2019, UNESCO and the Ministry of Higher Education, Training and Innovation co-implemented a project Supporting the Development of Innovation Acceleration Platforms in Namibia.30 The project was funded by the Korean International Cooperation Agency. This led to the formulation of a Namibian Strategy on Innovation: Accelerating Innovation, Realising the Vision for Namibia. The draft strategy was presented at the first Namibian Annual Innovation Conference in February 2019, which drew 350 national stakeholders.31 The draft strategy sets out a plan to boost innovation through entrepreneurship programmes and support centres, co-ordinated by the proposed Innovation and Entrepreneurship Development Agency. The project has assessed Namibia’s technology business incubators. It found that, as of early 2019, four existed at an embryonic stage.32 The project has since created an umbrella Business Incubation Hub with the government. SEYCHELLES Structural weaknesses In 2019, Seychelles was the only African country to graduate to the ‘very high’ bracket of the Human Development Index. However, the archipelago faces structural issues tied to its geography and small population (see Table 19.1): diseconomies of scale; overreliance upon tourism, fisheries and imported goods; and a relatively uncompetitive private sector. Tourism accounts for about 17% of direct employment and fisheries for 95% of domestic exports (Rep. Seychelles, 2020). The world’s first sovereign fund for oceans? At the heart of Seychelles’ development agenda is the sustainable expansion of its blue economy, based on the responsible use of ocean resources. This priority is reflected in Vision 2033 (2019), which is to be realized through two consecutive National Development Strategies for 2019–2023 and 2023–2033. Another goal is to reduce the vulnerability of key economic sectors to the impact of climate change. The Seychelles Blue Economy Strategic Policy Framework and Roadmap (2018) orientates the blue economy towards high-value jobs, while ensuring the integrity of habitats and ecosystem services. One focus is to strengthen the circular economy, such as by transforming fish waste into products like fertilizer. Seychelles launched the Sovereign Blue Bond in October 2018 to help local communities and businesses transition to sustainable fisheries and preservation of the ocean. Reportedly the first of its kind in the world, the fund had raised US$ 15 million by June 2020 from foreign investors; this is being put towards expanding protected marine areas and strengthening the governance of fisheries. Loans and grants are provided through the Blue Grants Fund and Blue Investment Fund (Rep. Seychelles, 2020). Efforts to protect the marine environment are also reflected in international agreements. For example, under the Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Agreement renewed with the EU in October 2019, a limit is imposed on the number of EU vessels that may fish in local waters, as well as the tonnage of fish they may recover. Vessels must also respect conditions of employment for Seychellois seamen (Rep. Seychelles, 2020). In 2017, the government banned the import and use of plastic bags, single-use plastic kitchenware and Styrofoam takeaway boxes, in line with regulations under the Environmental Protection Act. Silo mentality to overcome The National Institute for Science, Technology and Innovation (est. 2014) produced its first Science, Technology and Innovation Policy and Strategy (2016–2025) in 2016. It has been condensed and translated into local languages to raise awareness of its provisions. Under this strategy, a National Research Foundation is to be established, which will be responsible for hoisting research funding to the targeted 2% share of GDP by 2025. Southern Africa | 561 Chapter 20 An updated STI policy The National Commission on Research, Science and Technology released the National Programme on Research, Science, Technology and Innovation for 2014–2017, which prioritized areas such as health, agriculture and fisheries, water, manufacturing technologies, ICTs, biotechnology and space science. The document described the national innovation system as being fragmented and scattered, with institutions functioning in isolation. The government subsequently launched a consultative process to update the National Policy on Research, Science and Technology (1999). This led to the formulation of the Science, Technology and Innovation Policy 2020–2030, which is accompanied by two five-year implementation plans. The policy sets out to strengthen linkages between the public sector and industry. Strategies include engaging with the private sector and enhancing the use of scientific data for evidence-based policy-making. To improve the policy, legislative and regulatory environment, sectoral policies will be developed for indigenous knowledge systems, space science and technology and public-sector innovation, along with a strategy for the bio-economy. In space science and technology, Namibia is already participating in the Square Kilometre Array and African Very Long Baseline Interferometry Network hosted by South Africa. For this purpose, the University of Namibia’s Department of Physics received a first High Performance Computing rack from South Africa’s Centre of High-Performance Computing in 2016 and a second in 2019. The rack also serves other purposes, such as monitoring of land degradation. The development of national research facilities is about to become a reality, following the approval of the Science, Technology and Innovation Infrastructure Strategy by the National Planning Commission in November 2020. The Commission had already launched the National Biotechnology, Testing, Training and Research Laboratory for genetically modified organisms in 2018, once a biosafety regulatory framework was in place to ensure full implementation of the Biosafety Act (2006). This foundation will also be responsible for building local and international partnerships. In 2020, a Long-Term National Research Plan was under development; it is expected to prioritize the establishment of a National Science Centre and a Regional Centre of Excellence in Blue Economy Research. The first phase of an exercise mapping the national innovation system was completed in August 2019, with support from the United Nations Industrial Development Organization. It identified the following weaknesses: budgetary constraints; poor ‘critical STI skills’ being cultivated by the education system from the primary to tertiary levels; and a ‘silo’ mentality among research communities that hindered inter- and transdisciplinary work. The world’s first floating solar farm in a lagoon The Department of Energy and Climate Change (est. 2015) has developed the National Climate Change Policy. Adopted in May 2020, it commits to facilitating research and monitoring of the long-term impact of climate change and supporting related education and training, along with promoting sustainable forms of public and private transportation. The policy foresees establishing a National Climate Change Council to ensure that public planning mainstreams issues related to climate change. As of 2019, renewables account for 8% of Seychelles’ 126-MW total installed capacity, according to IRENA. An additional 9 MW is being added to the electricity grid through two solar photovoltaic plants presently under construction, one of which, the Floating PV Plant in the Providence lagoon, will be the world’s first floating solar farm on a saltwater lagoon. In the president’s 2020 address on the state of the nation, the target to 2030 for renewables in the share of energy production was raised from 15% to 30%. In 2017, the UK-based Institute for Environmental Analytics launched the Renewable Energy Space Analytics Tool in Seychelles, which makes it possible to analyse the grid impact of different deployments of renewables, to support policymakers maximising the impact of their investment. The Medium-term Strategic Framework for 2019–2024 is the second implementation strategy for the National Development Plan (2012–2030). According to this strategic framework, insufficient progress has been made towards eliminating poverty and reducing inequality. It has seven focus areas: a capable, ethical developmental state; economic transformation and job creation; education, skills and health; reliable and quality basic services; human settlements and local government; social cohesion; and a better Africa and world. Innovation on the agenda In 2018, the government approved the White Paper on Science, Technology and Innovation, which updates its predecessor from 1996. Some shifts in emphasis are notable. There is a focus on innovation, as reflected in the new name and mandate of the Department of Science and Innovation in 2019, previously the Department of Science and Technology (DST). Whereas the 1996 White Paper prioritized institutional development, the updated document addresses socioeconomic and environmental challenges to improve people’s lives. It sets a target of raising GERD to 1.5% of GDP by 2030. The White Paper identifies the main barriers to the national innovation system as being: an inadequate and noncollaborative STI agenda-setting; a lack of policy coherence and co-ordination; weak linkages between the various actors; inadequate monitoring and evaluation; and a poor environment for innovation, among others. The White Paper proposes an ‘innovation compact’ across government, to ensure STI policy coherence across areas such as the economy, social development, education and the environment.33 The White Paper will be implemented through consecutive decadal plans from 2020 onwards. These will set out specific measures and be reviewed and updated every five years. A panel of experts appointed by the minister in 2015 recommended, in 2017, developing an overarching policy and evaluation framework, as well as a national regulatory policy framework. SOUTH AFRICA Persistent exclusion hinders development Since 2014, the economy has suffered from contractions in the agricultural and mining sectors, exacerbated by an ongoing electricity crisis and prolonged strikes. Lethargic economic growth since 2014 (Figure 20.1) has edged South Africa into third place behind Nigeria and Egypt for the size of its economy. South Africa remains a dual economy with one of the highest and most persistent inequality rates in the world. This duality has been maintained by limited advances in social inclusion and the incapacity to create sufficient jobs (World Bank, 2020f ). As a result, youth unemployment in South Africa is the highest in the SADC region, at 55% in 2019. In spite of these challenges, South Africa counts the region’s most sophisticated innovation system. Its strengths include dynamic institutional structures, effective policy frameworks and the region’s highest research intensity (Figure 20.4). 562 | UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT Circular economy ‘a powerful opportunity’ Led by the National Advisory Council on Innovation, the South Africa Foresight Exercise for Science, Technology and Innovation 2030 published its findings in a Synthesis Report released in November 2019. The upcoming first decadal plan for the White Paper is expected to draw on this exercise. The foresight exercise identifies nine areas with a high growth potential: the circular economy; education for the future; sustainable energy; the future of society; health innovation; high-tech industrialization, ICTs and smart systems; nutrition security; and water security. Although the exercise found the circular economy to be poorly understood, it was seen as a ‘powerful opportunity’ for South Africa to advance its sustainable development agenda. The exercise recommended four thrusts: reducing, reusing and recycling waste; ensuring sustainable water, energy and food security; a low-carbon and climate-resilient economy; and smart connectivity and mobility in communities. Experiments in co-funding R&D Since 2013, several new funding instruments have been launched: l The government has been experimenting with co-funding R&D in strategic sectors with industry, through the Industry Innovation Partnership (2013) fund. l The Grassroots Innovation Programme (2019) provides social entrepreneurs and innovators in townships and rural areas with technical and financial support. Some 100 innovators were enrolled in the programme in 2019 to help them develop their concept and commercialize their ideas. l The SME Fund (2016) is backed by ZAR 1.4 billion (ca US$ 93 million) in capital. By October 2019, the fund had approved ZAR 1 billion for investment, placing it among South Africa’s largest institutional investors. In March 2019, it launched CEO Circle, an initiative with a mandate to invest in emerging businesses run by Black CEOs. l The Sector Innovation Fund (2013) targets eight industrial sectors and is co-funded by the public and private sectors. A 2019 evaluation of the programme found a need for reform. A 2019 impact evaluation suggested that the 2006 incentive providing a 150% tax deduction on a firm’s research expenditure has had a positive impact on business R&D. However, the evaluation could not demonstrate a significant impact on the productivity, growth or profitability of the firms surveyed. A broad evaluation of government incentive programmes (DPME/DSBD, 2018) has revealed a lack of co-ordination and learning in government around the design of these programmes; in many cases, monitoring and evaluation have not been incorporated. Innovation Bridge Portal ready for Covid-19 In 2017, the DST launched the Innovation Bridge Portal, an online platform to foster linkages between national and international innovators, industry and funding partners. The portal enables entrepreneurs to showcase their innovation, access support services and discover funding opportunities. Table 20.3: Research infrastructure approved by the South African Research Infrastructure Roadmap Research infrastructure Year established Main function Expanded Freshwater and Terrestrial Environmental Observation Network 2017 operates a network of instrumented landscape-level platforms for environmental research The Nuclear Medicine Research Infrastructure (NuMeRI) 2017 medical imaging facility focusing on drug development and clinical research South African Population Research Infrastructure Network (SAPRIN) 2017 consolidates existing health and demographic surveillance sites and leads the development of new ones; collects data to help tackle poverty, inequality, unemployment, lack of access to health care South African Centre for Digital Language Resources 2019 supports the creation, management and distribution of digital language resources Natural Science Collections Facility 2017 organizes more than 40 museums, science councils and universities hosting plant, animal and fossil specimens; houses collections in a virtual facility Shallow Marine and Coastal Research Infrastructure (SMCRI) 2016 provides instruments and physical research platforms along the coast of South Africa to collect data to support environmental policy-making DIPLOMICS 2017 a network of academic, commercial and industrial labs working in biological disciplines with the ‘omics’ suffix; supports laboratory infrastructure and advanced training for technicians Southern Africa | 563 Chapter 20 Expanding research infrastructure The National Research Foundation Strategy 2020 (2016) fixed the target of raising the global share of publications by South African scientists to 1% by 2020. By 2019, South Africa’s global share was 0.8% (see chapter 1). This strategy set out a new Science Engagement Framework, with four strategic aims: to popularize science; actively engage in discourse on science and technology; promote science communication; and profile South African scientific achievements. It singles out the three national research facilities for nuclear sciences, biodiversity and environmental sciences, in particular, for an injection of capital and expansion. These priorities are reflected in the South African Research Infrastructure Roadmap (2016) published by the Department of Science and Technology. By the time of the roadmap’s launch, seven new types of research infrastructure had already been approved (Table 20.3). A further six are foreseen.34 In 2016, the DST announced a ZAR 60 million (ca US$ 4 million) investment over three years to help meet demand in research and business for big data facilities. There are plans to extend the National Integrated Cyber Infrastructure System by establishing a regional data centre which could eventually form part of a national network of centres to support dataintensive activities. As of December 2020, this initiative appears to be ongoing. The National Integrated Cyber Infrastructure System integrates the Centre for High Performance Computing,35 the South African National Research network and the Data Intensive Research Initiative of South Africa. One of its strategic objectives is to enable large-scale global research and science projects, including the Square Kilometre Array telescope (Box 20.1). The DST also directed funds towards establishing the National e-Science Postgraduate Teaching and Training Platform, which was launched in 2017. Its mission is to cultivate advanced skills in the area of e-science. Six universities offer master’s degrees in this field through the platform, which welcomed its first 30 students in 2018. The number of students enrolled in an e-science degree programme doubled to 60 in 2019. During the Covid-19 pandemic, the portal created a space for researchers to submit the details of research projects pertaining to the pandemic, with options to request support for expertise, funding or materials. On another page, innovators could submit information about their inventions and request support for distribution, licensing, sales, etc. In 2016, the Ministry of Telecommunications and Postal Services released the National Integrated ICT Policy White Paper,36 which delivers a strategy for embracing the Fourth Industrial Revolution, including by stimulating domestic and foreign investment in ICT infrastructure, manufacturing, services and R&D. IBM Research–Africa, the first industrial research facility on the African continent, is developing Industry-4.0 technologies in Kenya and South Africa (Box 20.4). A multipronged approach to Industry 4.0 A Commission on the Fourth Industrial Revolution was appointed in 2019, consisting of about 30 stakeholders with a background in academia, industry and government. Its mandate is to ensure that the integration of digital processes boosts competitiveness, supports rural development and is inclusive, especially for youth and women across the Industry 4.0 value chain. Box 20.4: The social responsibility compact between IBM and the Government of South Africa The South African government has passed legislation to ensure that companies behave as responsible corporate citizens. Codes of Practice require all entities operating in the South African economy to contribute to the objectives of Broad-based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE). Since multinationals may have global practices preventing them from complying with the ownership element of B-BBEE through the traditional sale of shares to Black South Africans, the Codes of Practice have made provision for the recognition of Equity Equivalent contributions, as an alternative contribution to the economy. When IBM decided to set up a research lab in South Africa in 2016, it negotiated an agreement with the government under which IBM pledged to set up an Equity Equivalent Investment Programme. A focus on social priorities in the host country Dr Tapiwa Chiwewe from IBM Research in South Africa described the ways in which IBM was fulfilling its commitment to social responsibility in South Africa, at a session on capacity-building in basic and applied research organized in Morocco on 13 December 2018 as part of UNESCO’s Forum on AI for Africa. He explained that IBM was focusing its research in South Africa on health care, education, agriculture and financial services. ‘For instance, there is a four-year lag in reporting cancer statistics in South Africa’, he said. ‘AI can 564 | UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT correct this by automating the process of studying pathology reports, meaning that this analysis can now be done in nearreal time. In the financial sector, access to credit is a problem. An AI application can create a credit score that will reduce the default rate on repaying loans.’ The first industrial research facility on the African continent, IBM Research–Africa is present in both Kenya and South Africa. The lab in Nairobi is helping farmers in Nigeria to predict crop yields better, manage utilization and maintenance of tractors and obtain financing for the tractors. In Sierra Leone, during the Ebola crisis in 2014, IBM partnered with mobile network operators and the Open Government Initiative to develop a system that enabled citizens to report Ebolarelated issues and concerns via texts or voice calls. The IBM research lab in South Africa is located in the Tshimologong Digital Innovation Precinct, an innovation hub close to Wits University of international repute. In parallel, IBM has set up an academic programme offering internships and scholarships to South African students. In Dr Chiwewe’s view, the best place to train people is the university campus. However, Dr Chiwewe has concluded from his tour of computer science departments across South Africa that few are doing research on AI. This suggests a need for curricular reform. A number of companies and banks have sponsored university chairs in South Africa. This is a two-way street, since businesses can then recruit qualified students. Mentorship for young inventors IBM has an enterprise development programme that provides mentorship for young inventors. ‘Today’s start-ups have the advantage of being able to access equipment via the cloud from companies such as IBM’, says Chiwewe, ‘where they can even open free accounts. There is a freer flow of information and knowledge nowadays, which gives start-ups an advantage over their forebears’. Jumo is one example of a South African start-up that has become a viable business. It has launched an AI-powered platform to assess lending risk and tailor financial products to those living in developing countries where credit information is scarce; it has received an investment of US$ 52 million from several investors, including Goldman Sachs. Chiwewe told the UNESCO workshop that ‘IBM believes in the open source movement and donates some of its patents to open source initiatives. Anyone can log onto IBM’s Digital Nation Africa platform to learn about technologies such as AI and obtain a certificate. For more advanced technologies like quantum computing, people can access a 16-qubit quantum computer via the cloud through IBM’s Q Experience’. Source: UNESCO (2019) Laying the groundwork for open science In addition to leading the development of the African Open Science Platform (Box 20.5), the government has sought to advance an open science agenda at the national level. Within the framework of the SA–EU Strategic Partnership, the SA–EU Open Science Dialogue Report was published in October 2018. It provides an initial policy framework, a precursor to a formal policy. The document is founded upon the Department of Science and Technology’s recognition that open science is a ‘game changer’ with the potential to ensure that scientific research is ‘cumulative’, transparent, informed by data, accessible and supported by public trust. The report’s main recommendation is to establish an independent Open Science Advisory Board, which would also assume the functions of co-ordination and monitoring. The report also recommends establishing an open e-learning platform and training programme. UNITED REPUBLIC OF TANZANIA Transnational railway under construction Tanzania graduated to lower middle-income status in 2019 (World Bank, 2020g). Since October 2015, the government has clamped down on corruption and sought to improve public administration. FDI dipped from 5.7% to 1.7% of GDP over 2010–2016 and has not recovered since. Investors face barriers to hiring foreign workers, opaque tax policies and a relatively unstable regulatory environment (USDoS, 2020). The National Development Plan 2016–2021 (2016) emphasizes industrialization and human development as twin priorities. The plan uses the phrase ‘business unusual’ to encapsulate its ambition of graduating to a middle-income, Box 20.5: The African Open Science Platform In December 2016, South Africa’s Minister of Science and Technology launched a three-year initiative to lay the foundations for the African Open Science Platform. Funded by the South African Department of Science and Technology, the initiative set out to offer guidance on data policy, map the African landscape and begin the process of building a pan-African open science community. A Draft Strategy for the African Open Science Platform was developed in early 2018. It argued that ‘there is no alternative for Africa but to adapt to this new paradigm but in its own, unique way, as a leader and not a follower’. The draft strategy acknowledged the risk that open science might allow better-funded research systems to reap the benefits of Africa’s open data (AOSP, 2018), yet its authors could ‘see no other option’. In their view, to counter the trend towards open science would be to limit the resources available to scientists and impede international collaboration and engagement. With open science being pursued elsewhere, there was a risk that the African knowledge divide could deepen.* This vision formed the basis of the official strategy, which was launched at the Science Forum South Africa in late 2018. The African Open Science Platform should provide scientists and other actors with the tools to embrace open science, facilitate data-intensive research and provide a digital space for interaction between scientists and other stakeholders. The platform comprises six strands: l a federated network of computational facilities and services; l software tools and advice on policies and practices concerning research data management; l a Data Science and AI Institute in data analytics; l priority application programmes, such as in relation to cities, disease, the biosphere and agriculture; l a Network for Education and Skills in data science and information; and l a Network for Open Science Access and Dialogue. Membership will comprise pan-African, regional and national institutions, which will participate in financing the platform and in implementing the six strands. Each of the strands is to be operational by 2021. *See essay on The Time for Open Science is Now, p. 9. Source: compiled by Jake Lewis; see: http://africanopenscience.org.za/ Southern Africa | 565 Chapter 20 An Inter-Ministerial Committee on Industry 4.0 was set up in 2019. It co-ordinates government efforts across seven ministries, as well as the work of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR).37 In 2019, South Africa and the World Economic Forum (WEF) signed an accord to establish an affiliate centre of the WEF’s Fourth Industrial Revolution Centre as a public– private partnership. Based at the CSIR, the centre will focus on emerging and convergent technologies. The CSIR hosts programmes on 3D printing at its National Laser Centre. It also runs a Data Science for Impact and Decision Enhancement programme, which trains youth in big data and analytics, using real-life case studies. This programme is central to the government’s goal to equip one million young people with skills in data science, 3D printing, cybersecurity, digital content creation, drone piloting and software development by 2030. In line with the Big Data Implementation Strategy and Action Plan (2016), there have been efforts to build computing capacities in partner countries. Computer racks have been delivered and training workshops conducted by the Centre for High Performance Computing in several partner countries, including Namibia (see chapter 20). semi-industrial economy by 2025, a goal first set out in the Tanzania Development Vision to 2025 (1999). Several major infrastructure projects have been launched. In April 2017, construction got under way of the Tanzania Standard Gauge Railway system, which will extend into Rwanda, Uganda, Burundi (see also Chapter 19) and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. This railway replaces an old metre-gauge system and is expected to reduce freight costs by 40%. As of June 2020, the first phase (300 km) was about 80% complete; the remaining four phases are set to add an additional 1 450 km (Ayemba, 2020).38 The Ministry of Transport announced plans in October 2019 to double the aircraft fleet of Air Tanzania, to 14 by 2022, following completion of the new Terminal III at Julius Nyerere International Airport in May (CGTN, 2019). The Tanzania Strategic Cities Project (2010–2020) has received a total investment of US$ 343 million, primarily from the World Bank. The project is rehabilitating, upgrading and constructing urban roads, footpaths and foot bridges in eight rapidly urbanizing cities (World Bank, 2020h).39 Three-quarters of rural communities electrified The National Energy Policy 2015 plans to achieve 10 GW of total installed capacity by 2025. Resources have been pumped into the country’s utility company, TANESCO, to enhance its technical and financial capacities. In February 2020, the Minister for Energy, Medard Kalemani, announced a rural electrification rate of 74% (9 001 villages). This exceeds the government target of connecting 7 697 villages to the grid between 2016 and 2021 and places Tanzania among the leaders in Africa for this indicator (Tanzania Invest, 2017; TDN, 2020). University courses on innovation Tanzania’s National Science and Technology Policy (1996) was replaced by the National Research and Development Policy (2010). This policy was, itself, due to be updated in 2020 to incorporate innovation, industrialization and technology transfer but this does not seem to have materialized. After its Innovation and Entrepreneurship Centre opened in 2015, the University of Dar es Salaam incorporated practiceoriented innovation and entrepreneurship courses into its curricula, as undergraduate and postgraduate electives. The centre offers business counselling and incubation services to students, staff and SMEs, including business plan development, advertising and marketing and financial guidance. Data on industry and innovation are still relatively scarce. To fill this information gap, the government is ‘mobilizing resources from internal and external sources’ to support sustainable, high-quality data systems. Building metadata for indicators is a priority (United Rep. Tanzania, 2019, p. 105). Fintech gaining ground The National ICT Policy (2016) updates the government’s 2003 strategy. It aims to strengthen leadership and cultivate human capital in this field, while expanding the provision of reliable broadband. There are plans to establish an accreditation body for ICT professionals and a separate mechanism connecting training institutions to employers. A new programme will empower citizens to use ICTs. Benchmarks include raising expenditure on ICTs to 0.3% of GDP and filling 90% of the National Data Centre’s capacity by mid-2021. The National Data Centre was established in 2016 (USDoS, 2020). In addition to offering public and private entities services such as data storage and back-up and domain registration, the centre has ventured into fintech; in July 2020, it launched the N-Card enabling digital payments. Mobile financial services are beginning to substitute conventional banking and payment channels. By 2019, 78% of adults in rural Tanzania could reach formal financial services within a radius of 5 km. As these services have expanded, dependence on informal financial services has declined: from 16% to 7% over 2014–2017 (United Rep. Tanzania, 2019). There are 31 active technology hubs in Tanzania (Figure 20.2), including the Dar Teknohama Business Incubator (Box 20.6). ZAMBIA Agricultural yields threatened by climate change About six in ten livelihoods in Zambia depend on agriculture. This sector is under pressure from the growing frequency and intensity of extreme weather events. In 2017, the combination Box 20.6: Dar Teknohama: a business incubator with a digital mission The Dar Teknohama Business Incubator (DTBi) operates as a company with a focus on supporting digital ventures. With the Tanzania Commission for Science and Technology serving as its guarantor, DTBi is working with local governments to establish similar tech hubs at district level. There are presently six ventures supported by DTBi in Mwanza. Since 2017, DTBi has collaborated 566 | UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT with mobile operators like Airtel to train hundreds of active and aspiring entrepreneurs in information technology. In June 2018, the hub launched the Tanzania Digital Youth Empowerment Programme (TADIYE) with support from the Embassy of Denmark, to equip budding young entrepreneurs with digital skills through a mobile app. The app also hosts the Business Plan Innovation Challenge for young entrepreneurs aged 15–35, which provides winners with seed funding of TZS 10–20 million (ca US$ 4 000–8 000). The second round of the challenge saw TZS 320 million (ca US$ 140 000) awarded to 24 entrepreneurs. One winning idea was to produce bags that naturally decompose in the soil within 180 days. Source: compiled by Jake Lewis; see: https://tadiye.or.tz/ Drop in rainfall undermining hydropower Access to electricity has improved only marginally since 2013 (see Table 19.2), when it reached about 28% of the population.40 Hydropower accounted for about 81% of Zambia’s installed generation capacity in 2019 but has become an unreliable resource, owing to insufficient rainfall. In the third quarter of 2019, there was a 700 MW energy deficit. To help correct this, the government introduced a feed-in-tariff scheme for small-scale (below 20 MW) renewable energy projects, which have, thus far, seen 200 MW of solar and small hydropower projects commissioned (Rep. Zambia, 2020). Zambia has also adopted a National Nuclear Policy (2020). The ultimate goal is to weave nuclear power into the energy mix to help curtail reliance on hydropower but the policy will also support applications in areas such as health, agriculture and mining. A shift from sector-based to integrated planning The Seventh National Development Plan for 2017–2021 is the government’s first attempt to shift from sector-based to an integrated planning process, in order to improve co-ordination. Its five pillars centre on: economic diversification and job creation; reduction in poverty and vulnerability; reduction in development inequalities; improving human development; and strengthening governance. The National Malaria Elimination Strategic Plan 2017–2021 also represents a significant policy shift. Whereas the emphasis used to be on alleviating the burden of malaria, the ambition now is to eliminate malaria altogether by 2021, through improved health care and community engagement. The incidence of malaria declined from 346 to 319 cases per 100 000 population over 2015–2018 (Rep. Zambia, 2020). A new dawn for industrialization? Industrial policy was formerly covered by the Commercial, Trade and Industrial Policy (2009) but, in light of the underperforming industrial sector and policy gaps, the government released the more focused National Industrial Policy (2018–2027) in March 2018. This policy’s key objective is to transform Zambia into a net exporter of value-added goods, utilizing local primary resources. The policy identifies the main barriers over the 2010–2015 period as being low levels of investment, little value addition in extractive industries, an unfavourable tax regime and a lack of engineering skills, in particular. The policy identifies eight priority subsectors: processed food; textiles and garments; engineering products; wood and wood products; leather and leather products; mineral processing and products; pharmaceuticals; and the blue economy.41 Measures include raising investment in supportive infrastructure, promoting R&D with a focus on commercialization; and developing a framework to help formalize micro-enterprises and SMEs. These will be accompanied by new legislation to promote investment, incentive regimes, value addition and local content. The policy identifies an imbalance in access, ownership and control of productive resources as a key contributor to gender inequality. The government is striving to right this imbalance, not least because ‘gender is an economic issue,’ by allocating 30% of the resources of the Citizen Economic Empowerment Fund to women. There are signs of a new dawn for industrialization. The Zambia Industrial Park in Lusaka, which focuses on construction materials, had created more than 300 jobs and contributed more than US$ 10 million to government tax revenue by August 2020. Launched two years earlier, the park was developed with investment from the China National Building Materials Group. It, reportedly, features automated production lines (MS, 2020). In 2018, construction got under way of the major Chibombo Multifacility Economic Zone, which will receive an initial Chinese investment of US$ 300 million. This facility is expected to create 5 000 local jobs and boast annual productive capacity. The zone is expected to support manufacturing plants in areas such as motor vehicle and generator assembly and food processing (Silimina, 2019). Young entrepreneurs being encouraged to innovate Zambia’s Science, Technology and Innovation Policy dates back to 1996 but an updated policy is reportedly ready for release. Existing research infrastructure is still geared towards basic research and the handful of accredited laboratories do not meet the productive sector’s quality standards. The Science and Technology Innovation Youth Fund is managed by the National Science and Technology Council, which receives an annual government allocation of about US$ 600 000 to pay for research proposals. The council’s call for proposals for 2020–2021 awards a maximum of ZMK 250 000 (ca US$ 14 000) to 18–35-year-old applicants with an innovative proposal that addresses a national priority area. In November 2020, Zambia’s National Technology Business Centre signed an agreement with the UNDP for a National Innovation Initiative. This led to a call for entrepreneurs and Southern Africa | 567 Chapter 20 of persistent drought and power cuts eroded agricultural productivity and commodity prices. It also fuelled the fiscal deficit (Rep. Zambia, 2020). In November 2020, the government announced plans to default on its foreign debt as a consequence of the Covid-19-induced global economic slowdown. The government’s forthcoming Climate-Smart Agriculture Strategy Framework is expected to identify targeted climatesmart practices and institutional mechanisms to support their implementation. The investment plan identifies the following climate-smart practices as showing promise in Zambia: commercial horticulture, crop diversification into legumes, agroforestry and strategies to reduce post-harvest losses. Poverty and hunger remain serious challenges in Zambia but there has been some progress. Multidimensional poverty declined from 69% to 59% in rural areas over 2016–2020, according to government estimates. Between 2014 and 2019, the scope of the Social Cash Transfer programme was extended from 38 to all 116 districts. This programme has been making regular cash payments to poor households since 2003 (Rep. Zambia, 2020). early-stage start-ups to propose inventions that support sustainable development. The 20 winners will each receive a ZMK 50 000 award (ca US$ 2 800) at an innovation fair to take place in Lukasa. ZIMBABWE A focus on value addition In 2018, Zimbabwe underwent a historic change in leadership. The new government has expressed a commitment to pragmatic economic transformation to attract investment. The El Niño climate pattern of 2019 brought on a drought which compromised agricultural yields. Cyclone Idai followed in March. Extreme poverty is estimated to have risen from 29% to 34% of the population over 2018–2019, driven by economic contraction and a sharp rise in prices for basic commodities (World Bank, 2020i). The central ambition of Zimbabwe’s Vision 2030 (2018) is to achieve upper middle-income status by 2030. The focus is on value addition and beneficiation, to produce highervalue exports. This objective is to be realized through the Transitional Stabilization Programme for 2018–2020, followed by two five-year national development strategies. The first of these was launched in November 2020; it targets an annual growth rate of 5%, with emphasis on the agricultural, mining, electricity and manufacturing sectors. R&D a feature of the industrial plan The National Industrial Development Policy 2019–2023 (2019) identifies fertilizers, pharmaceuticals, potato processing, dairy products, soya and packaging as priority industries for export. To diversify the industrial sector and make it more competitive, the policy proposes mobilizing funds to develop innovation hubs and industrial parks; providing incentives for R&D with a focus on industrial applications; expanding hard and soft infrastructure for ICTs; and establishing a legal framework that ensures a fair ecosystem for SMEs and largescale entrepreneurs. Tax rebates and low interest rates are to be offered to firms that invest in R&D and imports of machinery and equipment are to be exempted from import duties. To promote investment, loans for certain projects will be covered by a government guarantee. Milestones in fibre-optic networks Since 2018, the government has been establishing information centres to provide urban and rural areas with enhanced last-mile connectivity. As of December 2020, 154 such centres had been established and were operating in all ten of Zimbabwe’s administrative provinces. Broadband facilities have been made available to most universities at preferential rates, with support from private–public partnerships like Liquid Telecom. Zimbabwe has been implementing the National Communication Fibre Optic Backbone project since 2009. Several milestones have reportedly been reached, including the completion of the Beitbridge-Masvingo-Harare and 568 | UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT Beitbridge-Bulawayo-Harare links in 2019, implemented by the public telecommunications company TelOne via a US$ 98 million loan from China Exim Bank (Karombo, 2019). Research in Industry 4.0 fields In 2018, the Harare Institute of Technology was charged with taking the lead on Industry 4.0, in light of the competencies of its teaching staff in nanotechnology, bioinformatics, AI, big data analytics, biomedical engineering and other relevant fields. The Zimbabwe High-Performance Computing facility was launched in 2015, with an interest-free loan from the Chinese government of US$ 5.4 million (The Herald, 2015). The facility has since implemented research programmes in areas that include cognitive robotics and architecture, data analysis for weather and climate change modelling, financial analytics, computational chemistry, civil protection, drug discovery and phylogenic analysis of HIV variants. The year 2018 saw the launch of the National Geospatial and Space Agency. It is conducting research on fertilizer requirements for various soil types and mapping areas with solar potential and others with a prevalence of malaria, among other projects. Six new science parks on the horizon The Second Science, Technology and Innovation Policy (2012) is Zimbabwe’s most recent.42 As a signatory and Party to the SADC Protocol on Science, Technology and Innovation (2008) since 2018, Zimbabwe had committed to raising GERD to at least 1% of GDP by 2020. This was an ambitious target, given that a national African Science, Technology and Innovation Indicators Survey concluded in 2015 that Zimbabwe’s GERD amounted to less than 0.001% of GDP. The National Science Park and Innovation Hub programme was launched in 2018 to develop eponymous infrastructure at six universities, as well as an industrial park in in each of the ten administrative provinces. Funding allocated to the programme (US$ 60 million) is being used to build and purchase equipment for the six universities. By mid-2019, three of the six hubs were operational. 43 Over 2012–2016, five universities took turns hosting an exhibition on Research and Intellectual Outcomes, Science Engineering and Technology. From 2020 onwards, it is planned to rebrand this exhibition as a package of ten provincial science fora; these will culminate in the Zimbabwe Science Forum, to be modelled on the Kyoto Science and Technology for Society Forum and South Africa Science Forum. Education 5.0 expanding the mission of public universities The Education 5.0 programme was launched in 2018, to expand the tripartite mission of public universities – teaching, research and community service – to include innovation and industrialization. Under Education 5.0, public universities are being encouraged to work with local communities and start-ups to identify challenges and provide solutions. The programme Solar-powered streetlights In 2015, the Harare City Council announced plans to install about 10 000 solar-powered streetlights, to put an end to the frequent power outages that had reportedly raised residents’ fears of crime. It was anticipated that an investment of US$ 15 million would result in monthly savings for the city on electricity bills of US$ 200 000. However, local media outlets have reported that most of the solar lights installed are dysfunctional and that four out of the five companies contracted have not met their obligations.45 In 2012, a memorandum of understanding was signed with Zambia to co-develop the Bakota Gorge Hydro-electric Power Station. Construction was expected to begin in 2020 but, as of November, the project is yet to get under way (CRO, 2020).46 CONCLUSION A better environment for business and innovation Successful regional integration in Southern Africa will take a cocktail of ingredients, including the removal of barriers to trade (especially non-tariff barriers), political and economic stability and greater freedom of movement for capital, goods, services and people. Countries have been taking complementary steps, notably by investing in energy and digital infrastructure. Better public services through the development of e-governance and the availability of a more reliable electricity supply is making it easier for both local and foreign firms to do business in Southern Africa. Growing recourse to digital payment services is, meanwhile, offering opportunities for the development of e-commerce and fintech and should, ultimately, reduce the size of the informal economy. Governments will now need to expand on these efforts, while harmonizing financial subsectors and actively implementing the African Union’s Protocol to the Treaty Establishing the African Economic Community Relating to the Free Movement of Persons, Right of Residence and Right of Establishment to foster greater mobility. One impediment to greater uptake of digital services by consumers and businesses is their unaffordability. Greater competition in the market could help to lower costs. Every SADC country now counts at least one active tech hub, incubator or accelerator. This trend should nurture nascent industries, promote diversification and feed an innovation-driven pattern of development. The Southern African Innovation Support Programme hosted by Namibia and funded by Finland is supporting this movement by developing a training curriculum for innovation-supporting organizations, mentoring innovation accelerators and holding hackathons and start-up weekends. Generally speaking, there is strong support at the regional level for greater co-operation and integration. The Square Kilometre Array hosted by South Africa offers the region an opportunity for greater scientific co-operation. It has the potential to boost scientific mobility and, more generally, to develop cross-national capabilities in cuttingedge Industry 4.0 fields like artificial intelligence and big data. More investment in renewable energy Universal access to energy is a prerequisite for the development of every sector – from education and research to the economy and the efficient delivery of public services. SADC countries are expanding their electricity grid and have begun making a substantial investment in renewable energy sources. They have been developing partnerships with the African Development Bank, World Bank, Chinese Exim Bank, European Union and others to expand the grid and implement off-grid solutions like solar photovoltaics to reach the wider population. Greater recourse to renewable sources of energy is a cornerstone of the regional strategy for achieving universal access to energy and coping with the effects of climate change, which is already taking its toll through more intense and frequent periods of drought and severe storms. Large hydropower projects may not be an option for countries suffering from a chronic drop in rainfall. Even in countries blessed with abundant rainfall, such projects can exert a high environmental, social and economic cost for decades to come. In the desire to make up for lost time, there can be a temptation to think big but countries must take care not to sacrifice sustainability to oversized solutions that may bring the population little benefit and heighten debt exposure. Digital technologies can potentially facilitate a move away from large-scale, centralized, dispatchable power to cleaner, decentralized and community-based means of energy production and consumption. However, progress on this front has been slow compared to other African regions like East Africa. Take, for example, the expansion of digital payment system M-Kopa into solar energy in Kenya (see Box 19.7). Governments attuned to need for climate-sensitive development Growth has been observed in scientific output from the region on renewable technologies such as biofuels, wind and Southern Africa | 569 Chapter 20 tasks universities with establishing an innovation and industrialization fund drawing on tuition fees that is to be managed by non-university staff. By 2019, at least one university, polytechnic, teachers’ college or industrial training college had been established in each of Zimbabwe’s ten administrative provinces. The government has also established four new science-focused universities since 2018.44 The Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Enrolment Initiative was launched in 2015; it provided grants to over 2 560 candidates studying mathematics, physics, chemistry or biology at public secondary schools. The programme had to be suspended in 2018 for want of adequate financial support. Over 2018–2019, the government introduced training programmes for science teachers at five institutions and launched a new teachers’ training college in Mutare. A total of 780 qualified science teachers are expected to graduate and enter the education system by 2022. solar energy. This is also the case for research on other SDG-related topics such as agro-ecology, help for smallholder food producers and climate-ready crops. Governments have become much more attuned to the need for climate-sensitive development policies. Mozambique is investing in climate-resilient infrastructure, for instance, and Zambia has adopted a Climate-Smart Agriculture Investment Plan. Some SADC countries are collaborating on agricultural research, such as the joint calls for research proposals issued by Malawi, Mozambique and Zimbabwe in 2019. This collaboration on agricultural research is part of a wider trend towards closer scientific ties. All but Angola, Madagascar and South Africa count another African country among their five top scientific collaborators, with South Africa being a pivotal partner for all but these two countries and Comoros. KEY TARGETS FOR SOUTHERN AFRICA l l l l l l l l l l Angola seeks to develop five solar power plants for a total of 300 MW by 2022; Botswana’s ambition is to become a high-income country by 2036; The Democratic Republic of Congo fixes two targets for research intensity in its draft STI policy: 0.80% by 2022 and 1% by 2030; Eswatini is striving to provide universal electricity access by 2022 and Mozambique by 2030; Madagascar plans to provide 70% of the population with access to electricity by 2030; Mauritius aims for renewables to account for 35% of total final energy consumption by 2025; Namibia aims to have a research intensity of 1% of GDP by 2022, Seychelles 2% of GDP by 2025 and South Africa 1.5% of GDP by 2030; Namibia aims to expand electricity access to 67.5% of the population by 2023, with an additional 220 MW to come from renewables; By 2030, South Africa expects to have granted more than 2 000 SKA bursaries at undergraduate, PhD and postdoctoral levels; Tanzania plans to achieve 10 GW of total installed electricity capacity by 2025. Erika Kraemer-Mbula (b. 1977: Spain) is Professor of Economics at the University of Johannesburg (South Africa). At the same university, she is also Chairholder of the Department of Science and Technology and National Research Foundation’s Newton Fund Trilateral Chair in Transformative Innovation, the Fourth Industrial Revolution and Sustainable Development. She holds a PhD in Development Studies from the University of Oxford (UK). In her work, Prof. Kramer-Mbula has adopted a crossdisciplinary approach to exploring alternative development paths for African countries. Gussai Sheikheldin (b. 1982: Sudan) is Research Fellow at the Science, Technology and Innovation Policy Research Organization (STIPRO, Tanzania), a think tank. He specializes in technological change, development studies, sustainable design, renewable energy solutions and institutional economics. Dr Sheikheldin holds a PhD in Environmental Design and Rural Development from the University of Guelph (Canada). Rungano Karimanzira (b. 1956: Zimbabwe) is Director of Technology Transfer at the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development of Zimbabwe. She is Permanent Representative of Zimbabwe to the World Meteorological Organization, having held multiple governmental and scientific roles in relation to hydrology, meteorology and climate change mitigation and adaptation. Ms Karimanzira holds a Master’s in Theoretical Mechanics from the University of East Anglia (UK). 570 | UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT ACKNOWLEDGMENTS REFERENCES AAS; ASSA; CDST; ICS et al. (2018) The African Open Science Platform: The Future of Science and Science for the Future. African Academy of Sciences, Academy of Science of South Africa, Committee on Data for Science and Technology and International Council for Science: Nairobi. AfDB (2020a) Comoros Economic Outlook. African Development Bank Group. 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Thanks go also to the following people who provided information: Philippe Mawoko, Director of the African Observatory for Science, Technology and Innovation in Equatorial Guinea; Gernot Piepmeyer, Manager of Policy and Programme Development at Namibia’s National Commission on Research, Science and Technology; Mwenya Mulenga, Assistant Director of the Department of Science and Technology in the Zambian Ministry of Higher Education; and Xavier Estico, head of the National Institute for Science, Technology and Innovation in the Seychelles. FSC (2019) Recognition of Digital Assets as an Asset-class for Investment by Sophisticated and Expert Investors. Financial Services Commission: Ébène, Mauritius. Rep. Mauritius (2019) Voluntary National Review Report of Mauritius 2019. Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade: Port Louis. Warner, J.; Jomantas, S.; Jones, E.; Ansari, S. et al. 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See: https://tinyurl.com/yytyyeh5 — (2019) Climate-Smart Agriculture Investment Plan: Zambia. World Bank: Washington, DC. ENDNOTES Southern Africa | 573 Chapter 20 1 Burundi applied unsuccessfully for SADC membership in early 2017. 2 These countries are Botswana, Comoros, Eswatini, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa and Zambia. The services sector makes the greatest contribution to the economies of Seychelles, Mauritius and South Africa, at 70%, 67% and 61% of GDP, respectively. 3 The countries participating in the Trade Related Facility are Botswana, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe. 4 These are: Botswana, Lesotho, Mauritius, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Eswatini and Zambia. 5 These three programmes are entitled: Support to Improving the Investment and Business Environment; Trade Facilitation Programme and Support to Industrialisation and Productive Sectors; and A Conducive Environment for Inclusive and Sustainable Industrial Development, Increased Intra-Regional Trade and Job Creation. 6 The first phase ran over 2011–2015, implementing training programmes and providing support for regional policy-making. 7 See: https://tinyurl.com/digital-governance-World-Bank 8 The seven aspirations of Agenda 2063 are: a prosperous Africa based on inclusive growth and sustainable development; an integrated continent, politically united and based on the ideals of Pan-Africanism and a vision of the African Renaissance; an Africa of good governance, democracy, respect for human rights, justice and the rule of law; a peaceful and secure Africa; an Africa with a strong cultural identity, common heritage, shared values and ethics; an Africa whose development is people-driven, relying on the potential of the African People, especially its women and youth, and caring for children; and Africa as a strong, united, resilient and influential global player and partner. 9 This project received technical support from the United Nations Industrial Development Organization and financial assistance from Advanced Development for Africa. 10 See IRENA’s Statistical Profiles: https://www.irena.org/Statistics/StatisticalProfiles 11 The World Bank (2020b) estimates that, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, two-thirds of the population could be given electricity access through off-grid solar home systems, for an investment of US$ 3.3 billion. 12 Zambia’s Climate-Smart Agriculture Investment Plan (2019) was developed with World Bank support to guide policy-making but is not, itself, an official government policy. According to the plan, although climate-smart agriculture could mitigate the impact of climate change, productivity gains will not be sufficient to prevent further conversion of forest into agricultural land which, in turn, could impede progress towards Zambia’s climate commitments. 13 Science granting councils distribute funds for R&D, as well as scholarships and bursaries; advise on policy-making; and co-ordinate bilateral and multilateral agreements in science and technology, among other things. 14 The ten countries to report data are: Angola, Botswana, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Eswatini, Seychelles, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa and Tanzania. The first five of these were the new additions to the African Innovation Outlook (2019). 15 Sample sizes varied across countries for the third African Innovation Outlook (2019). Eswatini returned the highest number of questionnaires (149), followed by Namibia (68), Angola (41), Lesotho (36) and Seychelles (15). 16 The Southern Africa Network for Biosciences is operational in Botswana, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe. 17 Now that the cable system is in place, data traffic between Angola and Brazil need no longer be directed through Europe and the USA. 18 See: https://tinyurl.com/EU-space-science-Botswana 19 See: https://www.mascom.bw/mascom-eschools-project/ 20 The Democratic Republic of Congo ranked 183rd out of 190 countries in the World Bank’s Doing Business 2020 report. 21 Among the 56 SDG-related topics related to the SDGs analysed by UNESCO, the largest publishing increases concerned reproductive health and neonatology (+113%), traditional knowledge (+92%) and tropical communicable diseases (+72%) between 2012–2015 and 2016–2019. 22 As of 2019, about four-tenths of Eswatini’s primary energy supply is imported, largely from South Africa and Mozambique (Govt of Eswatini, 2018). 23 Information regarding the level of activity presently taking place at the Royal Science and Technology Park was not available to the present authors. 24 Madagascar ranked 184th out of 190 countries for access to electricity in the World Bank’s Doing Business 2018 report. 25 See: https://tinyurl.com/y5d7vp8b 26 See: The Government Gazette of Mauritius (2019) General Notice No. 1036 of 2019. No. 51, 23 May. 27 See: https://tinyurl.com/y2jpcxnj 28 The cheapest prepaid broadband product cost US$ 4.78 in the first quarter of 2015, compared to US$ 1.88 in the same period in 2020 (RAMP, 2020) 29 The R&D surveys cover the following years: 2008, 2009, 2010, 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017. 30 This project was also implemented in Indonesia; see chapter 26. 31 The National Innovation Conference in February 2019 was one outcome of the project Supporting the Development of Innovation Acceleration Platforms in Namibia. 32 These were the Innovation Design Lab and Fablab, hosted by the Namibian University of Science and Technology; the Innovation Hub at the National Commission on Research, Science and Technology; and the business incubators of the Ministry of Industrialization, Trade and SME Development. 33 Government institutions have also been re-organized since the new administration took office after the May 2019 elections. A Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology has been introduced, with responsibility for the Department of Science and Innovation and the Department of Higher Education and Training. These changes are expected to improve co-ordination and co-operation in formulating joint programmes. 34 The six additional types of infrastructure planned concern biobanks, a South African marine and Antarctic research facility, a nano-micro manufacturing facility, a solar research facility, a material characterization facility and a biogeochemistry research infrastructure platform. See the South African Research Infrastructure Roadmap (2016): https://tinyurl.com/y6jgf5ta 35 The South African Centre for High Performance Computing offers consultancy services in fluid dynamics, materials science, finite-element analysis, discrete element modelling and the design of high-performance system. It expanded its computational power in 2016, adding a 40 000-core petascale machine. 36 This gives effect to a 2015 recommendation for a multistakeholder ICT policy review panel. 37 The Interministerial Committee has six workstreams: infrastructure and resources; research, technology and innovation; socio-economic impact; human capital and the future of work; industrialization and commercialization; policy and legislation. Most universities have explicit plans to respond to Industry 4.0, including through the introduction of new courses. Since 2019, the University of Johannesburg has hosted the Department of Science and Technology/National Research Foundation/ Newton Fund Trilateral Chair in Transformative Innovation, the Fourth Industrial Revolution and Sustainable Development. 38 Other sources have estimated the total length at more than 2 000 km (Railway Gazette, 2017). 39 These are: Tanga, Arusha, Mwanza, Kigoma, Dodoma, Illemela, Mbeya and Mtwara. By 2017, the project had built 141 km of urban roads and 15 km of major drains (Tanzania Invest, 2017). The project has also supported local capacity-building to support future implementation of urban plans. 40 Access to electricity is much lower in rural parts of Zambia, at 8% (2018). The government has identified the connection fee as the main barrier to progress in rural electrification (Rep. Zambia, 2020). 41 Zambia’s National Industrial Policy defines the blue economy as ‘the transformation of marine and coastal sectors, as well as freshwater inland rivers and lakes, for economic growth through the development of fisheries and aquaculture, transport and logistics, including tourism.’ 42 See Kraemer-Mbula and Scerri (2015) for more on this strategy. 43 Science parks have launched at Midlands State University (2018), the National University of Science and Technology (2019) and the University of Zimbabwe (2019). They are foreseen at the Chinhoyi University of Technology, Harare Institute of Technology and the Zimbabwe National Defence University. 44 These are Marondera University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology (est. 2018), Manicaland State University of Applied Sciences (est. 2018), Gwanda State University (est. 2018), and the Pan African Minerals University of Science and Technology (est. 2019). 45 See, for instance, Mushonga (2019) and The Herald (2018) 46 Once completed, the Bakota Gorge Hydroelectric Power Station will have a total installed capacity of 2.4 GW, to be shared between Zambia and Zimbabwe. Construction is expected to cost about US$ 5.2 billion and take until 2026 (CR, 2020). UNESCO SCIENCE REPORT The race against time for smarter development It is striking how development priorities have aligned over the past five years. Countries of all income levels are prioritizing their transition to digital and ‘green’ economies, in parallel. This dual transition reflects a double imperative. On the one hand, the clock is ticking for countries to reach their Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. On the other, countries are convinced that their future economic competitiveness will depend upon how quickly they transition to digital societies. The UNESCO Science Report’s subtitle, ‘the race against time for smarter development’, is an allusion to these twin priorities. This seventh edition of the report monitors the development path that countries have been following over the past five years from the perspective of science governance. It documents the rapid societal transformation under way, which offers new opportunities for social and economic experimentation but also risks exacerbating social inequalities, unless safeguards are put in place. The report concludes that countries will need to invest more in research and innovation, if they are to succeed in their dual digital and green transition. More than 30 countries have already raised their research spending since 2014, in line with their commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals. Despite this progress, eight out of ten countries still devote less than 1% of GDP to research, perpetuating their dependence on foreign technologies. Since the private sector will need to drive much of this dual green and digital transition, governments have been striving to make it easier for the private sector to innovate through novel policy instruments such as digital innovation hubs where companies can ‘test before they invest’ in digital technologies. Some governments are also seeking to improve the status of researchers through pay rises and other means. The global researcher population has surged since 2014. The Covid-19 pandemic has energized knowledge production systems. This dynamic builds on the trend towards greater international scientific collaboration, which bodes well for tackling this and other global challenges such as climate change and biodiversity loss. However, sustainability science is not yet mainstream in academic publishing, according to a new UNESCO study, even though countries are investing more than before in green technologies. With financial support from 9 789231 004506