Dr Tom Kariuki presents Edinburgh Infectious Diseases 2018 Winter Lecture
Dr Tom Kariuki, director of the Alliance for Accelerating Excellence in Science in Africa, spoke to a large audience about the huge opportunities for developing world class research across Africa, and his optimism for the future.
In a packed Playfair Library on 13 November 2018, he spoke about the work of the African Academy of Science and the forward strides they are making to accelerate African research to address health and developmental challenges.
He eloquently described how the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations paint an optimistic picture of what the world can look like in 2030. But on many targets, especially those related to poverty and disease, it is clear that African countries still have the far to go.
In human terms, this means that the quality of life for more than a billion people on the fastest-growing continent on earth hangs in the balance.
Science, Technology and Innovation has been identified as key to achieving the SDG targets in Africa, addressing the biggest health and development challenges in malaria, HIV and TB.
Shifting the centre of gravity for African science to Africa
Tom Kariuki explained how the African Acadmy of Sciences is currently working to support research, development and commercialisation of novel, high-impact solutions through global strategic partnerships to transform Africa’s future – and a key message of the importance of shifting the centre of gravity for African science to Africa.
Alliance for Accelerating Excellence in Science in Africa
Developing Excellence in Leadership, Training and Science (DELTAS) Africa
Meeting students
Earlier in the day Dr Kariuki met with PhD students from the Wellcome Trust funded Hosts, Pathogens and Global Health, who are addressing some of the key health problems facing Africa, and also students who are supported by the University of Edinburgh's Darwin Trust and Mastercard Scholar Programmes.
Slides from presentation
Dr Kariuki has made the slides from his presentation available at the link below.
