Bamako, Mali
May 30, 2007
by Talent Ngandwe,
SciDev.Net
Mali has developed a ten-year plan to encourage and finance
agricultural research and development.
The plan, announced this week (24 May), aims to provide a
coherent policy for scientific research in the country, says
Adama Traore, executive secretary of the
National Council for Research
in Agriculture (CNRA), the organisation coordinating the
plan.
The plan will bring together civil society, the private sector
and farmers to develop ideas for future agriculture research.
Government ministries such as agriculture, health, environment,
technology and finance are working to form committees to push
the research agenda forward.
National agriculture institutions such as the Central Veterinary
Laboratory and the Rural Economy Institute will liaise on
research projects.
To address the research skills shortage and the problem of brain
drain, the University of Mali will introduce a new agricultural
research curriculum to recruit and train new scientists.
The government will provide 30 per cent of the US$61 million
budget for the first three years. The local private sector and
farmer associations will make up the remaining 60 and 10 per
cent respectively.
Traore told SciDev.Net that by raising money locally, the plan
will help decrease dependence on foreign donor money. At present
almost 60 per cent of agricultural development in Mali depends
on foreign assistance.
A trial programme, in which the cotton seed sector contributed
around US$600,000 to agricultural development, has already been
a success, says Traore, and the CNRA wants to extend the
programme to sectors such as rice and livestock production.
Ever since the introduction of democracy in Mali and the
government's new policy of funding research, research and
development have been high on the country's agenda, says Modibo
Haidara, director general of the National Centre for Research in
Science and Technology.
This has encouraged local scientists to begin undertaking
research projects in different fields, he said.
The centre has begun its own programme to promote science,
Haidara says, by introducing annual innovation competitions in
secondary schools and research institutions. |
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