Bulawayo, (New Ziana) – African scientists have been implored to drive the continent’s development agenda through inclusive and open scientific research that directly benefits communities.
This was said by Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development, Obert Jiri on Tuesday while delivering a keynote address at a three-day 2025 Global Research Council (GRC) Sub-Saharan Africa Regional Meeting and Science Granting Councils Initiative Academy Symposium in second largest city.
The event is being co-hosted by the Research Council of Zimbabwe (RCZ) and the National Research Foundation (NRF) of South Africa, bringing together research funders, policymakers, and scholars across Africa and beyond.
Jiri told delegates that scientific collaboration and innovation were essential to addressing Africa’s complex challenges, from climate change to food insecurity.
“Science must lead development. We cannot rely on business or science as usual. We need a new paradigm for research and innovation, one that is inclusive, equitable, and focused on sustainable outcomes,” he said.
Jiri highlighted the urgent need to democratise access to scientific knowledge, arguing that paywalls and restrictive data policies have long excluded researchers and communities in the Global South from full participation in knowledge creation.
“For too long, science has been locked away from our communities. Open science must mean that a smallholder farmer in the rural areas can access climate-resilient agricultural data as easily as a professor in Bulawayo,” he said.
He highlighted the need to integrate indigenous knowledge systems with modern research, citing local indicators such as mango tree yields and bird nesting patterns as examples of traditional climate prediction methods that could complement formal scientific models.
“We must value indigenous knowledge, integrating the deep time-tested wisdom of our communities with cutting-edge scientific discovery to create contextually relevant solutions.
“Of course, at one point I was also involved in deciphering this indigenous knowledge. When we saw that if mango trees produce a lot of fruit, it means that the following year will be a drought year.
“If you see bed nests being made close to the riverbed, it means that that particular season was going to be very challenging, less rain. But if you see these nests high up from the riverbed, it means that that season was going to be very good.
“They can be robust indicators, but they can also be very localized ones. The important part is to be able to link that indigenous knowledge to cutting edge science so that it becomes relevant,” Jiri said.
He also urged scientists and funding agencies to prioritise community-engaged research, stressing that the true measure of impact lies not in academic publications but in the tangible benefits to livelihoods, health, and resource sustainability.
“Research must be co-created. We must move beyond experts arriving with pre-packaged solutions. Policymakers, researchers, and communities should sit at the same table from the very beginning, “Jiri said.
He called on SGC to fund projects that deliver measurable impact and promote open access to research data.
“SGC should support cross-border collaborations on pressing regional issues such as climate change, food insecurity, and malnutrition.
“I also challenge scientists to maintain curiosity-driven research as transformative discoveries often arise from fundamental inquiry rather than immediate application,” he said.
Jiri also spoke on the emergence of synthetic artificial intelligence and implored African researchers to anticipate and prepare for future scientific frontiers.
New Ziana
