Henry Oryem Okello, Uganda’s State Minister for Foreign Affairs has demanded for increased funding for Science and Technology Research and Development in Universities and Institutions funded by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).
Speaking at the first summit of the OIC on Science and Technology which ran from 9-11 September 2017 in Astana, Kazakhstan, Oryem informed the Summit that Uganda's challenge, which was not much different from others in the developing world, was in the current education system, which emphasizes theoretical academic work with little depth on applied science, engineering and technical skills which are central to technological innovations.
The minister led a 9-person delegation to the summit, comprising of Elioda Tumwesigye, the minister of science and technology and officials from the Ministries of Science, Technology and Innovation and Foreign Affairs.
Oryem observed a need to reduce scientific and technological gaps in the Members States. He emphasized that the Government of Uganda had given high priority support to the Science, Technology and Innovation sector in its overall development strategy by establishing the Uganda National Council for Science and Technology (UNCST) as the overall sector coordination agency.
He said that the UNCST has developed and reviewed that National Science, Technology and Innovation Policy which the Government formally adopted. To implement this policy the Government later created a fully-fledged Ministry of Science and Technology.
The outcome of the Summit is expected to be the adoption of an OIC Science, Technology and Innovation Agenda 2026 and the Astana Declaration.
The Astana Summit is meant to ensure a clear understanding of the necessity to completely reduce scientific and technological gaps between Muslim Ummah and developed countries. It will also contribute to the earliest implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and promote the principles of cooperation and solidarity among all OIC Member States.