By Monroe Dikiny Joel Onyango, Maureen & Salome Okoth
As delineated by the World Bank, capacity building entails strategic investments in individuals, institutions, and practices to propel nations towards the realization of their development objectives. Within the realm of community capacity building lies the essence of self-reliance, cultivated through nurturing social cohesion and security.
The African Centre for Technology Studies (ACTS) has garnered multiple accolades for its research excellence and advocacy of science, technology, and innovation in Kenya and beyond. What distinguishes it as a leading organization for more than 30 years?
This blog highlights the critical role of capacity strengthening in driving sustainable development. This will unravel the success story of ACTS in capacity strengthening and its significant impact on advancing individuals and organizations across Africa. We will explore the dynamic strategies such as knowledge enrichment, network expansion, and information support that ACTS leverages to establish a local and global presence.
Knowledge building
ACTS has been actively organizing workshops, seminars, and conferences covering a wide array of topics such as science, technology, innovation, agriculture, energy, and climate change to foster a culture of continuous learning. These platforms allow researchers, policymakers, and stakeholders to exchange experiences, knowledge, and best practices.
Notably, ACTS has recently inaugurated the ACTS Pathways Academy, a professional platform designed to offer a borderless, flexible, and informative educational experience to cultivate skills, knowledge, and collaboration in Science, Technology, and Innovation (STI). This innovative platform provides demand-driven courses that are easily accessible online at affordable rates, enhancing learning opportunities for a diverse audience. This academy offers monthly webinar sessions, with a recent successful session being on “Integrating Green Finance into Africa’s Economic Growth Agenda.”
Network building
Establishing partnerships and alliances is a crucial aspect of organizational capacity. ACTS has been actively collaborating with a diverse range of stakeholders, including donor agencies, universities, research organizations, governments, communities, and private sectors, to facilitate the adoption and scaling of advancements in science, technology, innovation, agriculture, energy, and climate change across the developing world.
Under the Climate Resilient Economies Programme, ACTS has introduced the ACTS Sustainability Fellowship Programme, aimed at providing early-career African individuals with an inclusive and collaborative platform. This programme offers specialized courses, mentorship opportunities, case study simulations, publications, and a summer school experience to enhance the capacity and skills of participants in addressing sustainability challenges in Africa.
In 2024, APA hosted a highly successful Summer School in collaboration with esteemed partners. The ACTS Summer School 2024, themed “Decolonizing Pathways: Transformational Leadership by Curating Change across Sustainable Science Communication,” took place from August 25th to September 1st, 2024. The programme aimed to cultivate transformational leadership through sustainable science communication, focusing on decolonial perspectives and inclusive practices. It included various activities such as public lectures, talk shows, group discussions, case studies, social events, and walk-shops. Key components featured innovative tools like the All Hands on Deck cards, the Communications Wheel, the leading and following game, the snap game, the headline game, and 35 activity games to engage participants and enhance learning.
This collaborative effort brought together diverse perspectives and expertise to explore innovative approaches to decolonizing the mind and promoting transformative change in the Global South.
Coaching and mentorship
ACTS has made significant strides in fostering capacity building through coaching sessions and mentorship programs for various organizations and institutions. One notable initiative is the Climate Resilient Programme, where ACTS recently facilitated coaching and mentorship sessions for youth-led organizations as part of the MasterCard project. In this initiative, ACTS developed a governance curriculum aimed at addressing specific challenges faced by these organizations, helping them devise practical solutions and implement best practices. As a result, these organizations have successfully established clear visions and missions while setting achievable objectives using the SMART approach. Additionally, ACTS has played a crucial role in restructuring its management, establishing clear communication channels, and improving operational efficiency.
The APA launched a two-month mentorship programme for Sustainability Fellows across Africa in another effort. This programme focuses on practical skills vital for professional success and pairs experienced professionals with early-career researchers and academics. The areas of mentorship included Data Analysis and Visualization, Writing and Publishing, Project Management, Grant Writing, and Research Methods. This initiative aimed to nurture the next generation of researchers in Africa and promote sustainable development across the continent. Through these targeted mentorship and coaching programmes, ACTS contributes to building capacity and resilience within organizations, ultimately driving sustainable growth and development in the region.
Policy making and advocacy
Through the Kenya Climate Science, Technology and Policy Roundtable, ACTS aimed to bridge the gap between research and policy-making in climate change in Kenya by facilitating collaboration among climate policymakers, researchers, and think tanks. It seeks to document and share case studies on effective methods for incorporating research evidence into climate change legislation, policy development, and implementation in Kenya. The Roundtable convened quarterly under the 'Chatham House Rules,' which brought together climate scientists, think tanks and policymakers to encourage open dialogue and exchange of ideas on various aspects of the Kenya Climate Change Policy Bill. This platform will enable policymakers to access research evidence for informed decision-making and allow researchers to highlight policy issues requiring further investigation for the benefit of policymakers.
Supporting information
ACTS is dedicated to employing robust data collection methodologies to ensure the acquisition of comprehensive and nuanced information that accurately reflects the complex landscape of science, technology, and innovation for sustainable development. Acknowledging the critical importance of data reliability, the organization upholds stringent standards to maintain data integrity.
In the current era, characterized by the necessity for precision, ACTS harnesses advanced information management systems to streamline the organization, analysis, and data dissemination. Through cutting-edge technology, ACTS enhances its capability to efficiently organize vast datasets, facilitating timely and well-informed decision-making processes.
Furthermore, ACTS leverages its expertise in supporting information to promote evidence-based decision-making internally and in collaboration with external stakeholders. By emphasizing data integrity, ACTS solidifies its reputation as a trusted source of information, reinforcing the credibility of its research outcomes and amplifying the impact of its contributions to advancing science, technology, and innovation in Africa. Through these concerted efforts, ACTS demonstrates its unwavering commitment to capacity strengthening and its pivotal role as a catalyst for sustainable development across the continent.
Conclusion
The African Centre for Technology Studies (ACTS) is a powerhouse that promotes science, technology, and innovation in Kenya and across Africa. For three decades, ACTS has driven sustainable solutions to Africa's challenges through capacity strengthening, community engagement, partnerships, and research.
The African Centre for Technology Studies focuses on capacity strengthening for sustainable community development, emphasizing knowledge building through workshops and the ACTS Pathways Academy, coaching and mentorship programmes, networking through partnerships like the Sustainability Fellowship Programme, policy-making, and the successful Summer Schools.
Therefore, we urge you to:
- Collaborate with ACTS in enhancing capacity locally and globally.
- Engage in our online and social media platforms for insights on science, technology, and innovation
- Apply for and participate in our virtual classes, fellowship programmes, and summer school.
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