Since 1999, in response to regional development efforts, in particular in Africa, within the context of the
UN Secretary-General’s reform agenda and as urged by the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), regional
consultative meetings are held to improve the coherence of the activities of the various UN agencies working
in the five regions of the world including in Africa. This reform agenda echoes the wishes of many Member
States of the UN to revitalize the role of the specialized agencies, to maximize efforts and to avoid duplication.
For Africa, six thematic cluster areas involving different UN agencies concerning the priority areas
for NEPAD were established to serve as an operational framework to support the African Union.
The Science and Technology (S&T) Cluster was established at the Fifth Regional Consultation in May 2003
designating UNESCO as the Convener and the UN Commission for Africa (UNECA) as the Vice-Convener.
The inaugural meeting of the S&T Cluster took place in July 2004 during the Sixth Regional Consultation.
The meeting adopted an initial programme of activities for active cooperation which included collaboration
with AU within the framework of the AU summit on the theme of science and technology to be held in
2007. In addition to UNESCO and UNECA, agencies cited as important for membership of the Cluster included
WIPO, UNIDO, UNCTAD, FAO, UNEP, World Bank, ILO and WHO. Since 2004, the Cluster has been working informally,
notably supporting and monitoring the process of the development of the AU “Africa’s S&T Consolidated
Plan of Action”; the review, update and restructuring of S&T systems and policies in Africa and in supporting
the Inter-agency Network on Biotechnology.
However, the Cluster needs to coordinate more closely, working as a functioning team to strengthen its
role as a significant partner in S&T to AU. In order to coordinate UN S&T input into the AU Summit,
to improve the functioning and to maximize efforts, a meeting of the UN S&T Cluster in support of the African Union and
to which other relevant partners were invited was convened by UNESCO in Paris on 9 June 2006.
The cluster engages in a mix of two sets of activities:
- focus on the the African Union Science and Technology Initiative aimed at the explicit application of S&T for industrialization and economic growth;
- mainstream S&T in other the African Union initiatives by defining issues which require S&T research, analysis and capacity building.
The Cluster worked closely with the African Union Plan of Action in science and technology, and in the preparation for,
and organization of the First African Ministerial Conference on Science and Technology in Johannesburg in November 2003.
In October 2007, UNESCO’s General Conference approved the launch of an African Science, Technology and Innovation Policy Initiative.
Contact the Coordinator
