THIS is the first part of a paper presented by an eminent Kenyan scholar Professor Calestous Juma (pictured) at the recent science and technology workshop, which contains comments on the report entitled National Science and Technology Policy Development in Kenya submitted to the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology. The report was prepared by an Ad Hoc Committee of the National Council for Science and Technology and the Kenya National Academy of Sciences. These comments are founded on the view that Science, Technology and innovation (S&T!) are not only essential for addressing immediate concerns related to meeting human needs, but they are critical to addressing long-term sustainability challenges as laid out in Agenda 21 and the results of the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD).

KENYA has entered its second republic following a major transformation in its political landscape. The future of the country now depends largely on the nature and outlook of its economic vision and the realignment of national institutions to reflect major trends in global affairs. Ongoing political reforms in Kenya have coincided with the growing realization that economic growth is largely a result of the transformation of knowledge into goods and services.
The measures taken by the country to focus on quality education represents a critical step in the transition towards a new economic vision for the country that reflects the imperatives of the 21st century and seeks to bring knowledge to the centre of the development process. This effort will only yield results if accompanied by significant adjustments in the functioning and structure of existing institutions of higher learning.
This note provides elements of a vision for the country based on ongoing efforts and additional ideas. It focuses on how the country could use institutions associated with education, science and technology as the engine of economic transformation. The note pays particular attention to the role of institutions of higher education (research institutions and a new generation of universities). It also addresses additional issues related to education, science and technology advice for the country.
Kenya has historically been associated with natural resources and raw materials as the basis of its economy. There is growing recognition that a transition into the modem economy will involve considerable investment and use of new knowledge. “A new economic vision for the country-articulated at the highest level of government-should focus on the role of knowledge as basis for economic transformation.” The emphasis on primary education therefore forms the first step in a major effort to bring knowledge-based institutions to the core of the development process.
The emphasis on knowledge should be guided by the view that economic transformation is a process of continuous improvement of productive activities through the role of business enterprises. In other words, the central theme government policy is continuous improvement or innovation aimed at enhancing economic performance. This improvement is an indication of a society’s capacity to adapt to change through learning. It is this process of continuous improvement through learning that enables nations to transform their economies and to achieve higher levels of learning. Education or continuous learning is therefore both an activity and a metaphor for managing change through time. Under this vision, the Government will function as a facilitator for social learning; business enterprises will become the locus of learning; and knowledge will be the currency of change.
This approach suggests that Kenya’s current science and technology policy is too narrowly founded on traditional views about “research and development” and needs to be expanded to incorporate other areas. It is important to stress that “science, technology and innovation (STI)” are pervasive elements that cut across the functioning of all ministries and therefore should not be limited to one part of government. All ministries have various aspects of science, technology and innovation. In other words, Kenya needs a “Science, Technology and Innovation” policy that can take into account all aspects of economic improvement.
Scientific and technological knowledge is characterized by rapid change, revision and discontinuities. Ensuring that the government operates on the best available information entails the strengthening of advisory institutions that focus on the role of education, science and technology for development. Kenya has a number of institutions that could perform this role. These institutions include the National Council for Science and Technology, the Commission on Higher Education and the Kenya National Academy of Sciences. The various ministries of government also have advisory functions.
It is important to distinguish clearly between high-level science and technology advisory functions involving executive leadership and operational activities that will be located in specific ministries (which will also have their own internal advisory structures).
But more critically, Presidential leadership should benefit from systematic STI advice that building on the input of the various bodies and coordinated though an appropriate organ. Similarly, sectoral bodies should also place science and technology at the heart of their operations and will need to have their own internal advisory and functional activities.
These institutions could play an important role in this field by adopting new procedures and practices. The heads of these institutions could function in some capacity as advisors to the Government on matters of science and technology. A study of various approaches used around the world could help the Government to determine the most effective way to provide such advice on a continuous and timely basis.
The Commission for Higher Education, for example, could playa key role in matter related to the role of higher education as a tool for development, especially on how to link higher education to business development. These advisory activities could be coordinated through the creation of an Office of Science and Technology Advice under the Presidency. This office would also playa key role in promoting interactions between government, university, industry and the relevant sections of civil society in the design of technological strategies for the country.
A strategic vision for Kenya that focuses on the role of higher education in economic transformation requires a reorientation of the role of universities. This can be done using at least two approaches. The first is reforming existing universities. The second is designing new universities that focus on technical skills, entrepreneurial development, and community service. This note focuses on the second approach. Current efforts to upgrade polytechnic institutions to a new generation of universities represent a critical step in this transition.
This offers a unique opportunity to strengthen engineering education in the country. While there is ample capacity in existing infrastructure to accommodate new universities, more attention needs to be placed on the content of education provided by the new institutions. Emerging evidence suggests that universities designed to serve development purposes have at least three critical attributes.
First, these institutions focus on technical training a core aspect of their curriculum. The technical training could reflect specific needs. For example, Earth University in Costa Rica is focusing on agricultural sciences while other universities are emphasizing information and communications technologies as well as genomics.
Second, the new species of universities places particular emphasis on building entrepreneurial skills among students.
This additional focus ensures that students develop the capacity to transform ideas into business proposals as well as actual products and services for local and international markets. Students in these universities will be expected to develop practical skills in enterprise creation as a prerequisite for graduation.
This approach requires a reorientation of banking and financial institutions, including the development of new instruments such as venture capital.
Third, most of the universities that exist in Africa were originally designed to support nation building. The challenge today is community development. As a result, the new species of universities will need to be integrated in the communities they are located and should seek to specifically promote economic transformation in their geographical locales. This means that their curriculum will not only need to be adapted to local needs, but students will be expected to spend part of the time working with local communities. The main focus of the new species of universities will be to produce graduates who are trained to creation enterprises and therefore generate jobs while adding to the growth of the economy. This would be a departure from the current system that focuses on providing technical skills to people who would in turn need to be employed.
In addition to the training, the universities themselves would need to function as incubators for businesses. This function would be additional to traditional practices of linking enterprises to universities. The institutions would help in nurturing new enterprises through the provision of critical services needs to students in the early stages of enterprise development.
The Government’s initiative to upgrade three existing technical training institutes to full universities represents a unique opportunity to create the first generation of truly entrepreneurial universities whose design would benefit from state-of-the-art understanding of innovations in higher education around the world. The new institutions will also help to inspire adjustments in existing universities and help set the pace for future ones.

Prof Juma is a professor of Practice of International Development and Director, Science, Technology and Globalization Project, Kennedy School of Government, Havard University, USA..