West African Academicians To Deploy Science For Improved Health, Agriculture

West African Network of the National Academies of Sciences (WANNAS) has mapped out ways through which it will deploy science to improve the region’s health, agriculture, security and other important sectors of the economy.
The development emerged during the three- day Constitutive General Assembly of WANNAS in Abuja, the Nigerian capital, where it elected a Nigerian scientist, Professor Oyewale Tomori as the Bureau chairman.

In an interview with reporters, Professor Tomori said the group’s main objective is to begin to bring scientific solutions to challenges of insecurity, food shortage and other development issues currently affecting the region.
“These areas of priority and concern for the intervention of science and innovation in the region- health, agriculture and security will help to improve the lives of the citizens and make them even more productive,” the WANNAS chair said.

He said, “I think the areas of concern for us in Africa and West Africa in particular, the health area, the issue of food, agriculture, and even security and safety, those are the areas that science can come in.
“That is why I am really glad that together, instead of doing it individually as an academy in our different countries we are working together, because our problems are common, our problems are the same, and therefore when we bring all talents in the region we will look at these problems and solve them.

“We will be working together as a region, learning from each other, some countries have solved their problems, others have not, we are going to work together as a region.”
Tomori served as the regional Virologist for the World Health Organisation Africa Region from 1994 to 2004 before he was appointed as the pioneer Vice Chancellor of Redeemers University in Ogun State, South West Nigeria, a tenure that ended in 2011.

Others elected as officials of the WANNAS Bureau were Senegal’s Professor Moctar Touré, as 1st vice chairman; while Ghana’s Professor Benjamin Ahunu, was elected 2nd vice chairman.

Professor Makalé Traoré of Guinea was elected 3rd vice chairman, Professor Crépin Bipene of Ivory Coast emerged as bureau secretary-general, Burkina Faso’s Prof. Pare Afsita, was elected as treasurer.
The general assembly also elected Professor Holo Théodore of Benin and Prof. Gumedzoé Mawuena of Togo as co-authors.

The general assembly also established the headquarters of WANNAS in Yamoussoukro, Ivory Coast.
According to the adopted report of the WANNAS General Assembly at the end of its meeting, the West African scientists made various recommendations for ECOWAS.

These included the recommendation that ECOWAS should encourage collaboration among the National Academies of Sciences in ECOWAS member countries and facilitate the roadmap’s implementation by mobilising funding for WANNAS success.