(a) The predominance of subsistence and commercial activities;

(b) The narrow production base with inappropriate technol-ogy;

(c) The neglected informal sector;

(d) The degraded environment;

(e) Lopsided development;

(f) The fragmentation of the African economy;

(g) The excessive dependence on external factor inputs; and (h) Weak institutional' capabilities.

30. Whilst the African economy is predominantly a subsistence economy, the non-subsistence sector is also characterized by the predominance of commercial and trading activities based mainly on imports and exports with domestic production playing a secondary role.

31. The production base in Africa is narrow, both in terms of size and in relation to the range of goods produced. The production base, characterized by weak inter-sectoral linkages, has been contracting over the last two decades. Thus the combined share of agriculture and manufacturing sectors in GDP declined steadily, from 50 percent in the ]9608 to only a little over 30 percent in the 1980s, with the share of services rising. The most important causal factors include: capital shortage, low level of S& T application, shortage of trained personnel and their inappropriate orientation, scarcity of entrepreneurial capabilities, weak infrastructure, the small size of the private sector, and institutional rigidities.

32. The informal sector, which accounts for about 20 per cent of total output and over 20 percent of the total labour force, is not only neglected but is also discouraged by government economic policies. In spite of this, it plays a significant and growing role in economic activity.

33. Natural and man-made factors have considerably eroded the natural resource base in Africa. This situation warrants urgentpolicy attention,

of

which

African

countries

are aware

but not

yet

committed to.

34. In Africa, there exist sharp contrasts between urban and rural areas,

between

towns and villages, within urban areas and towns themselves, among social classes,

between the very rich and the very

poor, among different sectors, and between regions of the same country. Again this is due to the adoption and implementation of wrong economic policies.

35. Fragmentation of African products and factor markets has arisen primarily from the hostile physical environment, small size of nation states, and low income levels. This coupled with other factors has militated against the expansion of domestic and regional markets and intensified dependence on outside markets. This situation has made .Africahighly vulnerable to external markets.

36. The absence of vital institutions in the different sectors of the economy, or the inefficiency of existing ones, is also another major problem for Africa. It deserves special attention by policy-makers and planners.

37. The above structural problems together

With

inadequate national economic

management

constitute the issues

that must be addressed by

appropriate strategies, policies and programmes. In this regard, long-term plans that integrate short and medium-long-term plans, and incorporate suitable S & T policies and plans can go a long

way

towards bringing about economic transformation and sustained

development

in Africa.

c. Conseguences

of

EcODomic

Policies for the Role

or

S & T in

Develo.pmeDt

38. Having established the linkagesbetween S & T and economic policies in PartII. it is now necessaryto examinethe constraints that limit theeffectivenessof S& T policies inachievingoverall develop-mentgoalsandobjectives. Although

most

African countries have taken

steps

to establish S & T institutions for policy-making and planning, there

is

still no tangible evidence to

indicate either

an efficient or effective use of these institutions, or

their

contribution to overall development objectives. In this connection, two categories of

policy constraints can be

distinguished,

viz., general and

specific.

39. The general Constrains relate to inappropriate generalpolicies or to the absence of right policies that prevent S

&

T policies from playingtheirexpectedconstructiverolein socio-economicdevelopment.

These constraints refer to three major problems that are valid for all

African.

countries.. These are: (a) shortage oftrained manpower, (b) scarcity of resources, and (c) absence of effective linkages and coordination.

40.

MaIq)ower

Sbortye:

Scarcity oftrainedmanpower is a major problemin Africa limiting theeffectivenessof S & Tin development.

Shortages of scientific and technical personnel, in terms ofbothquality and quantity~ caused by inadequate system and level of education in African countries,posea severe obstacle for S & T development at all levels. In 1978,for Africa the number of trained manpowerinresearch

and

development (R & D)

was

53 per million population in contrastto 209 permillion population for Latin America,

nearly 400.

for Asia, .. 1,635 for Europe, and 2,736 for North America.

the

corresponding

number

for

Ethiopia, is below 20. These figures indicate how much

African countries are lagging behindotherdevelopingcountries (Latin

America and Asia) in terms of scientific and technical manpower.

41. Itis to be noted that manpower constraints are felt at the level of research and experimental development, i.e., at the level of S & T policy-making and planning as well as at the level of ,8& T applica-tion. It is ironic that those few trained personnel in Africa are

not

effectively utilised and have a tendency to seek employment either outside R&D activities within their own countries or outside Africa.

In this connection, brain draincontinues to take its toll and

to

impose a crippling effect on the efforts

made

by African countries for the development of8 & T.

42. Resources

Smeity:

The allocation of financial resources to national

scientific and

technological

endeavour,

particularly

for

R&D activities, is far from adequate. With government budgetary allocation to education in Africa of less than 10 percent of GNP, illiteracy .rate is over 50 percent. This situation adversely affects the formation of skills and the generation of

scientificcadres,

or the size of resources allocated to R&D activities. Expenditure on R&D in Africa constitutes, on average, less 'than 0.5 percent of GNP, as compared to

nearly

I.S percent in

Asia,

2.2percent in Latin America and about2.5percent in the developed countries. The scarcity of funds thus represents a severe constraint hampering S & T activities.

43. Inadequate financial resources affect not only the performance ofS & T

policy...

making and R&D institutions, but also the morale and performance of S & T personnel,

thus

contributing to growing brain drain which could

have easily

been minimised

by

allocating

sufficient funds for

S&,T

activities.

44. Coordination

and

!.tn_ Problems: In

many

African

countries S &, T

policy..

making and planning bodies. as well as a network of R &,D institutions have

been

established. However^t the absence of effective links between these institutions, and between R

&

Dans le document The influence of economic and development policies on science and technology in Africa (Page 124-128)