It's time for Africa to reap from commercialisation of research

Successful commercialisation of innovations by women researchers will unlock infinite possibilities for scientists and industry players, increase revenues for governments and better quality of life. [iStockphoto]

Ground-breaking research findings continue to gather dust on mouldy shelves and vaults across Africa. They simply lack a pathway to commercialisation. Research commercialisation is the process of transforming research findings and intellectual property into commercially viable practical products, services and processes. It's a process aimed at creating value from research by introducing tangible products or services to the market, licensing new technology to consumers or even establishing spin-off businesses.

But this is an area in which Africa, especially sub-Saharan Africa, is woefully deficient. The continent contributes a measly 2 per cent of the world's research output. It accounts for just 1.3 per cent of research spending and produces a tiny 0.1 per cent of all global patents. Kenya's Gross Domestic Expenditure in Research and Development in 2022 was only 0.81 per cent of the GDP - compared to a global average of 2.13 per cent.