In 2004 IDRC initiated a series of consultations on the state of biotechnology and emerging technologies in the various subregions where it works.

 

The Dakar Consultation aims to compile as complete an inventory as possible of biotechnology in West and Central Africa. The various sessions planned for the meeting (see Agenda) should help identify the biotechnologies ready for use in the subregion to meet the immediate needs of the population, as well as those that still require further research before being made available. Thus the meeting aims to determine the strategic factors for biotechnology development in West and Central Africa. This entails defining priority research issues for the subregion and working out potential lines of action for IDRC in the years ahead.

 

The Consultation was organized by IDRC’s regional office in association with Cheikh Anta Diop University in Dakar (Plant Biology Department of the Faculty of Science and Technology) and the Senegal Mission of IUCN – The World Conservation Union.

 

It brings together scientists from universities and research centres active in this area, as well as NGOs and civil society organizations, representatives of producer and consumer groups, private business corporations, the media, political decisionmakers, the subregional organizations concerned (CILSS, CORAF, CIRDES, ITC), and international organizations involved in agricultural development and food aid (FAO, WFP).

 

The biotechnology experts and stakeholders invited to the meeting come from Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Congo Brazzaville, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Gambia, Mali, Nigeria and Senegal.

 

The results of the consultation will be combined with those from other regions where IDRC is active, and the Centre will use the synthesis to map out lines of action and programs in the realm of biotechnology.

 

For more information, see the Agenda, the Concept Note, the List of Participants of the Dakar Consultation below.