“AUDA-NEPAD and global organizations want to change the narrative and drive the continental transformation”
By Dr Alexandre D, Essome
The African Union (AU) and the African Union Development Agency-New Partnership for Africa’s Development (AUDA-NEPAD), in collaboration with the African Union Commission (AUC), demonstrated strong leadership in advancing science, technology, and innovation (STI) as a central driver of continental transformation. The Science, Technology & Innovation (STI) Week, held February 10–12, 2026, in Addis Ababa alongside the 39th AU Summit, served as a high-level platform that brought together policymakers, researchers, innovators, development partners, and youth to accelerate the operationalization of the Science, Technology and Innovation Strategy for Africa (STISA-2034).
The event delivered tangible milestones, including the official launch of the STISA-2034 Implementation Plan, the unveiling of AUDA-NEPAD’s EdTech Vision & Plan 2030, and commitments to mobilize resources for scalable, inclusive innovation. In a world of geopolitical tensions, AUDA-NEPAD seamlessly teamed up with academia, governments, international bodies, and private investors from the Global South, Europe, and America creating a multi-stakeholder ecosystem that functions as a unified front. Scholars, policymakers, and investors converged to align on STISA priorities, including science communication to combat misinformation. These partnerships amplify African agency, with participants from Asia sharing best practices that mirror Africa’s challenges and turning potential rivals into collaborators.
The STISA-2034 Implementation Plan
The STISA-2034 Implementation Plan serves as Africa’s roadmap for the next decade, shifting decisively from vision to action. It operationalizes five sectoral priorities agriculture, health, ICT and digital skills, energy, and environment alongside six cross-cutting enablers such as infrastructure, human capital, and partnerships. This framework rejects reliance on raw material exports and imported solutions, instead prioritizing indigenous industrialization, knowledge-to-wealth creation on African soil, and shared prosperity. A key highlight was AUDA-NEPAD’s ambitious target to mobilize up to $6 billion (with the full estimated cost of STISA-2034 at $6.8 billion) over the next 12 months.
This funding push addresses urgent challenges like food insecurity, climate vulnerability, and technological competition by scaling solutions in areas such as Health Tech, EdTech, Space Tech, microchips, and infrastructure. AUDA-NEPAD’s leadership and CEO Nardos Bekele-Thomas emphasized in her address at the high-level diner gala that, “moving beyond pilot projects to concrete deeds, underscoring that Africa’s brain drain stems from underinvestment and can be reversed through targeted resources and political commitment” .
Complementing this momentum, a landmark $42 million (CAD 57 million) commitment was announced for Phase 3 of the Science Granting Councils Initiative (SGCI), running from 2026 to 2030. AUDA-NEPAD will coordinate with national science councils to leverage domestic STI financing and public-private partnerships, promoting African ownership and sustainability. As South Africa’s Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation, Prof. Blade Nzimande, highlighted, increased domestic investment is crucial to reduce dependency and align resources with continental goals.
Partnerships That Break Silos: The Hidden Power of Global Alliances
This buy-in is evident: policymakers are on board, investors have expressed keen interest, and academia and private sectors are mobilized, as demonstrated by initial pledges such as the $42 million from the Science Granting Councils Initiative (SGCI).
This collaboration challenges the narrative of Africa as a passive recipient, showing how cross-continental ties can mobilize resources, heighten the visibility of innovation’s urgency, and commit leaders to real change. The $42 million boost, announced during the STI Week, comes from a mix of international funders including Canada’s International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Norway’s government, the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), Wellcome Trust, Germany’s DFG, and South Africa’s National Research Foundation (NRF). This funding directly backs STISA-2034 priorities, specifically the SGCI’s third phase, explicitly supporting STISA-2034’s focus on sectors like agriculture, health, ICT, energy, and environment. Participants called for more African domestic investment to avoid dependency as highlighted by South Africa’s science minister Blade Nzimande. This represents tangible progress in resource mobilization, underscoring that international commitments are kickstarting the journey toward the full $6.8 billion needed.
The CJED side event in a nutshell
The Calestous Juma Executive Dialogue (CJED), co-organized by AUDA-NEPAD and Michigan State University, took place on February 12–13, 2026, at the Skylight Hotel in Addis Ababa. On Day 1 (moderated by Dr. Callista Rakhmatov), the program opened with welcoming remarks from senior AUDA-NEPAD and MSU representatives, followed by an overview and a keynote that l, Dr. Alexandre Essome, Co-Chair of the Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Sustainable Development (CAISD), addressed titled “The Future of Science Communication in Africa and the Global South”. The presentation framed science communication as essential infrastructure for building trust, shaping policy, and scaling innovation across the continent and beyond. In emphasis was the urgent need to transition from passive consumption of knowledge to active ownership, aligning communication strategies with STISA-2034 priorities.
The talk highlighted mobile-first approaches, integration of indigenous knowledge into African-centric data systems, and the value chain of knowledge from mineral beneficiation to public trust in “Made in Africa” technologies. The other important call of CAISD was for institutional reforms to make science communication a core academic metric and stressed gender equity as a prerequisite for inclusive progress. My address concluded with a powerful call to action: “The world is listening. It is time to speak,” setting the tone for the dialogue’s focus on combating misinformation and strengthening capacity in health, agriculture, and environment sectors.
Other morning sessions featured panels on science communication practices in Africa and Asia, while the afternoon included presentations of regional success stories (Africa, Asia, United States), open discussions, and interactive breakout groups focused on building capacity in health, agriculture, and climate/environment sectors. The day closed with theme-lead reports and reflections on progress and the agenda ahead. Day 2 began with a recap and moved into panels addressing misinformation in African and Asian contexts and exploring science communication tools and resources, with active youth involvement. Discussions followed, leading into lunch and breakout sessions on program and tool development. The afternoon featured a dedicated panel and workshop on the role of higher education institutions in science communication, health breaks, collective feedback, recommendations, and a way-forward presentation. The dialogue concluded with closing remarks from MSU and AUDA-NEPAD representatives, officially ending the 12th CJED and reinforcing science communication as a vital enabler for STISA-2034 implementation.
Other key Events at the STI week
Youth emerged as a central force, with initiatives like the Presidential Youth in AI & Robotics Competition challenging outdated stereotypes. The EdTech Vision & Plan 2030 reimagines digital learning as a systemic tool for equity and resilience, integrated with STISA’s enablers to empower learners and teachers through localized, interoperable solutions. Policy dialogues, including those under the Calestous Juma Executive Dialogue (CJED), emphasized reforms in higher education institutions for science communication and curriculum integration such as online agricultural science courses. These efforts tie directly into broader calls for domestic R&D investment and governance changes to embed STI across sectors.
In summary, the 2026 STI Week marked a decisive shift from aspiration to implementation. With initial funding secured, partnerships solidified, and a clear roadmap in place, Africa is positioned to own its innovation narrative. The urgency is clear: by seizing this moment through collective action and sustained investment, the continent can reverse the brain drain, drive inclusive growth, and secure a self-sustaining future. The choice and the time are now.
- Dr Alexandre D, Essome is a journalist the with 25 years of experience managing communication challenges and organizations for the United Nations. He is currently the Co-Chairs CAISD, a network connecting universities, civil society, government and private entities working to address Africa’s development issues through the leverage of technology and AI across the continent.
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