West Africa’s Insecurity, Food Challenges, Scientific Solutions to Be Developed

Scientific solutions will be developed to address the challenges of insecurity, food scarcity, and other development issues currently affecting West Africa.

This was the resolution passed during the three-day Constitutive General Assembly of the West African Network of the National Academies of Sciences (WANNAS) in Abuja, where a Nigerian scientist, Professor Oyewale Tomori, was elected Bureau chairman.

In an interview with journalists following his election, Tomori stated that the group’s primary goal is to begin bringing scientific solutions to the challenges of insecurity, food scarcity, and other development issues affecting the region.

While explaining the rationale for sector priorities, Tomori stated that agriculture and security will help to improve citizens’ lives and increase their productivity.

He stated, “I believe that science can contribute to areas of concern for us in Africa, particularly West Africa, such as health, food, agriculture, and even security and safety.”

“That is why I am so glad that instead of doing it individually as an academy in our various countries, we are working together because our problems are common, our problems are the same, and when we bring all the talents in the region, we will look at these problems and solve them.”

“We will work as a region, learning from one another; some countries have solved their problems, while others have not; we will work together as a region.”

Tomori worked as the regional virologist for the World Health Organisation Africa Region from 1994 to 2004 before becoming the pioneer Vice Chancellor of Redeemers University in Ogun State, South West Nigeria, a position he held until 2011.

Others elected to the WANNAS Bureau included Senegal’s Professor Moctar Touré as 1st Vice Chairman and Ghana’s Professor Benjamin Ahunu as 2nd Vice Chairman.

Professor Makalé Traoré of Guinea was elected as 3rd Vice Chairman, Professor Crépin Bipene of Ivory Coast as Bureau Secretary-General, and Prof. Pare Afsita of Burkina Faso as Treasurer.

The General Assembly also chose Professor Holo Théodore of Benin and Prof. Gumedzoé Mawuena of Togo as co-authors.

The General Assembly also established the WANNAS headquarters in Yamoussoukro, Ivory Coast.

According to the adopted report of the WANNAS General Assembly at the end of its meeting, West African scientists made a variety of recommendations to ECOWAS.

These included the recommendation that ECOWAS encourage collaboration among ECOWAS member countries’ National Academies of Sciences and facilitate the Roadmap’s implementation by mobilising funding to ensure WANNAS’s success.