Waking the lion

There are many potential problems that the future may hold for humanity, from climate change to finding alternatives to fossil fuels. As a group, chemists seem confident that science and technology will be paramount in helping solve these challenges, and that their expertise will always be in demand.

There are developing regions of the world, however, where scientific infrastructure and funding is lacking. Many countries sorely need a stronger scientific base if they are to successfully overcome their problems. As a charity, the RSC recognises the need to help support the chemical sciences in such countries. 

Sharing knowledge

The RSC has been increasing its support for chemistry in Africa over recent years. In 2006, it opened up its digitised journal archives, stretching back to 1841, free of charge to most African countries. Last year, over 200,000 articles were downloaded by 80 institutions from over 30 countries. To build on this work, the RSC is supporting the creation of a knowledge-sharing network for African chemical scientists.

Alejandra Palermo, the RSC special projects manager, explains how the Pan African Chemistry Network (PACN) will operate: "The network is organised on a hub and spoke model to reflect local needs. Scientists will meet through a programme of seminars, conferences and workshops. "Fellowships and grants will be awarded to enable active participation in these events and to further enhance networking, technology transfer and skills development by facilitating international mobility of key scientists."

Simon Campbell, an RSC past president, has been heavily involved in the Archive and PACN initiatives. For him, the sustainability of the network is fundamental to its success: "There are far fewer scientists in Africa than in developed nations. We see this network as bringing together the scientific community in Africa. Sustainable is the key word. This is not just a talking shop. It will build national chemistry communities." 

First hub

The first hub, based at the University of Nairobi in Kenya, has been funded with the assistance of a £1million grant from the agribusiness Syngenta. Syngenta recognises the challenges faced by agricultural in Africa and is keen to support local scientists finding local solutions. It believes in sustainable agriculture through innovative research and technology. 

Shem Wandinga, professor of chemistry at the University of Nairobi and chair of the hub, thinks the opportunities are exciting: "The expansion of academic knowledge will pave the path to transforming the lives of African people through chemistry. "Africa must play a key part in the development of solutions to African problems."

The Kenyan hub was officially launched in May 2008 with a scoping workshop, to discuss the needs of each area in the continent, providing a framework for the network's future work (see box below).

Representatives from 15 African countries attended and discussed four main areas: health, food and agriculture, energy and environment and chemical sciences education. Each was analysed in terms of education, innovation, research and networking, discussing issues and opportunities.

A number of themes came out strongly from the discussions, including the need for more practical training of African chemists and new ways to fund research, as current methods are often short term. It was suggested that one excellent tool would be a set of databases detailing the best scientists, best universities, equipment available, equipment not in use, funding mechanisms, and possible collaborators. 

Future plans

Over the next few months, the Kenyan hub will launch its first major activities. In the summer a competition will be run in schools and in September there will be a conference on biodiversity.

The Kenyan hub is just the first base to be rolled out and the RSC aims to find funding to support other hubs around the continent. Plans are already underway to set up a minihub in Ethiopia, also supported by Syngenta.

The RSC is working with a wide range of African organisations to ensure that a sustainable, selfsupporting network is created. These include the Federation of African Societies of Chemistry, the Natural Products Research Network for Eastern and Central Africa and the Southern and Eastern African Network for Analytical Chemists.

Mohammed Hassan, executive director of the Third World Academy of Sciences, thinks that much can be achieved: "The challenges are daunting - 70% of people in Africa live on less that $2 a day. But the opportunities are great. Each square kilometre of the Sahara receives the solar energy equivalent of 1.5 million barrels of oil every year. So cutting edge technology to harness this can transform the lives of people in Africa.

"African academics have been sleeping for a long time, but now they are slowly waking up. Now, I hope, we can wake up the African lion."