Delegates From 40 African Countries Meet to Discuss Access to Science and Technology by the Poor

7 October 2003
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United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (Addis Ababa)
press release

Delegates from more than 40 African countries will attend the third meeting of the Committee on Sustainable Development (CSD3) which opens today at the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) in Addis Ababa on the theme "Making Technology Work for the Poor in Africa".

The Committee on Sustainable Development was established by African Ministers responsible for planning, economic and social development in April 1996, to serve as a forum of experts that will provide advice to ECA in the areas of food security, population, environment, human settlements, natural resources, science and technology. The CSD also serves as a forum for the promotion of co-operation, exchange of information and sharing of experiences in the area of agriculture, population, environment and human settlements aimed at alleviating food insecurity and achieving sustainable development of Africa.

"We have chosen science and technology as the theme this year because of our firm belief that prospects for poverty eradication and sustainable development will remain dim until the majority of Africans start to use technology in their daily lives," said Josue Dione, the Director of the Sustainable Development Division at ECA.

A distinguished professor at Yale University, Robert Everson, will deliver three lectures woven around the quest for food security in Africa: "The Green revolution in Africa", "The Price of Admission to the Growth Club for African Countries" and "Development Strategies for Africa".

Prof. Everson's research interests include agricultural households in developing countries, economics of invention and technical change.

At the end of the four-day meeting, CSD3 will be expected to make specific recommendations for ECA and African governments on how to put science and technology within the reach of all Africans, especially the poor.

The Committee provides a platform for advocacy and assessment of follow-up activities by African Governments to regional and global plans of action such as the African Common Position on Environment and Development, the African Common Position for Habitat II, the Dakar/Ngor Declaration on Population, Family and Sustainable Development, Agenda 21, the Habitat Agenda, the Cairo Programme of Action on Population and Development, the Programme of Action of the World Food Summit and the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation of the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD).

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