UK university opens its first African S&T hub in Ghana

Imperial College London has launched its first African hub in Ghana, becoming the first UK university to have a permanent base solely focused on science and technology (S&T) in Africa aimed at strengthening collaboration in research, technology, education and entrepreneurship.

Known as the Imperial Global Ghana, it is the third hub to have been launched by Imperial College London outside the United Kingdom.

“We already have existing hubs in Singapore and San Francisco in the United States which opened earlier this year, and we are due to open one in India next year,” Stephen Johns, international communications manager of Imperial College London, told University World News.

The hubs enable Imperial to expand its activities worldwide. These include entrepreneurship programmes, startup accelerators, student placements, and programmes aimed at delivering new technology.

Regional collaboration

Imperial College London President, Professor Hugh Brady, said the new Ghana hub builds on “strong collaborations with the University of Ghana and the African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS) and [we will] use that as a springboard for greater collaboration in West Africa and the region”.

“I think, together, we will generate greater research capacity, innovation capacity and help support and nurture the next generation of entrepreneurs who can get their teeth into the big problems of our time, particularly climate change, antimicrobial resistance, pandemic preparedness,” Brady said.

“Equally they will be applying their discoveries to generate the next small and medium-sized enterprises, companies, jobs for Ghana while making an impact on the world in these important areas.”

On the day the hub opened, Imperial Global Ghana launched new fellowship schemes. These include the Imperial-Schmidt AI Fellows Programme for supporting early-career researchers from the University of Ghana and AIMS to collaborate with Imperial’s I-X Centre for Artificial Intelligence in science in London.

The Imperial-Schmidt Ghana AI fellows will join a cohort of global fellows with counterparts from India, Brazil and Malaysia.

Another scheme, the AIMS-Imperial Global Fellows Programme will see 40 doctoral researchers working together in Accra to develop professional, research and collaborative skills to tackle climate change and the challenges associated with rapid urbanisation.

National S&T systems

Dr Harris Andoh , a higher education researcher at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)-Science and Technology Policy Research Institute (STEPRI) in Ghana, told University World News science and technology hubs “play a vital role in strengthening national science and technology systems, especially in Africa, where many of these systems are either influenced by colonial legacies or primarily funded by donor support from countries in the Global North”.

He said Ghanaian scientists have been leaders in research areas that align with the hub’s objectives. “Therefore, hosting this hub in Ghana is a commendable initiative,” Andoh said.

“It complements earlier efforts such as the German government’s establishment of the West African Science Service Centre on Climate Change and Adapted Land Use (WASCAL) and the Global Change and Hydrological Cycle in the Volta Basin (GLOWA Volta) projects, which trained numerous climate scientists and related professionals,” Andoh said.

Andoh said Ghana’s national science system had historically welcomed collaborations and partnerships with institutions from the Global North, primarily because the national government allocates “very little” gross domestic expenditure on research and development, or GERD, for innovation, he said.

Dangers of replication

However, apart from the artificial intelligence component of the hub’s research focus, other areas like climate change and health, had been repeatedly studied and funded by various donors over the years, often without thorough evaluations of the impact of these activities on Ghana’s science and innovation systems or on the broader wellbeing of its citizens,” Andoh said.

“This lack of assessment raises concerns that the hub may replicate previous efforts without achieving significant outcomes,” he said.

“Another issue is the sustainability of the hub once the funding period ends,” Andoh said. “Without a clear sustainability strategy, the centre may struggle to continue its operations in the long term.”

While the new hub has garnered the support of many stakeholders, Andoh said a significant challenge lies in aligning its focus and objectives with the strategic plans and initiatives of Ghana, other West African nations, and the Economic Community of West African States, or ECOWAS, regional framework for addressing climate and health.

“Another challenge involves accessing climate change and health-related data that has been collected over the years by scientists and other stakeholders. Such data is essential to avoid duplicating past research and ensuring that the partnership generates long-term benefits,” he said.

Integration into policy

Andoh argued that educational and research institutions, particularly research councils and higher education institutions, should carefully assess existing collaborations on climate change and health and focus on building “new and relevant niche areas” within these fields that enhance the national science and innovation system.

“Developing such niche areas will not only strengthen the programmes of Imperial Global Ghana but also address specific challenges in climate change and health, thereby improving outcomes for Ghana and the wider region.

“One persistent issue in Ghana and across Africa is the limited uptake of research findings by stakeholders, including the very individuals and institutions conducting the research.

“Knowledge generated is often poorly disseminated and not integrated into policy, even at the local level. Imperial Global Ghana’s activities are relevant across all levels of policymaking and the hub must ensure its research findings and collaborative efforts are effectively translated into actionable policies and practices to maximise their impact,” Andoh said.