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Research funding key driver to knowledge economy

If Botswana is to become a knowledge-based economy, key institutions such as the University of Botswana should rise above just being mere centres of learning to become knowledge creators and producers.

This observation was made by Professor Roy Du Pre, European Union University Teacher Development Advisor at the University of Botswana at a public lecture held at the UB Conference Centre on March 15, 2018.

Professor Du Pre said for universities to become knowledge economy drivers they should ensure that all new staff were appointed with the highest degrees possible (doctorates) while assisting those already in their employ to upgrade their qualifications to the highest levels as well. That is more necessary because a country which sought to become part of the globalised knowledge economy like Botswana had to produce a new generation of knowledge workers.

“If you need your country to be a knowledge based economy, you cannot continue to recycle old knowledge or old ideas. You need to generate new knowledge,” warned Professor Du Pre. However, he said that could only be possible if government prioritized funding for research as critical to economy, but regretted that that was not the case in Africa.

As such, he said Botswana whose Vision 2016 espoused a knowledge based economy, should as a matter of urgency, and through the University of Botswana, strengthen its capacity for hi-tech training, increase postgraduate and research outputs, provide or increase research infrastructure, as well as establish support systems of innovation. He said Botswana’s education system should also be transformed in such a way that there was increase in applied subjects and applied research so that the academic staff was encouraged to create new knowledge.

Professor Du Pre described a knowledge economy as the use of knowledge to generate tangible and intangible values. “A key concept of the knowledge economy is that knowledge and education (referred to as "human capital") can be treated as a business product (exported for a high value return), or, a productive asset,” explained Professor Du Pre. This means that the key component of a knowledge economy is a greater reliance on intellectual capabilities than on physical inputs or natural resources.

Professor Du Pre warned that as the world had moved from a resource-based economy to a knowledge-based economy, knowledge creation and its application was central to economic growth in countries such as Botswana which were heavily reliant on natural resources. “Knowledge, no longer resources, is the major source of wealth,” he added.

Professor Du Pre also spoke about the importance of innovation and the development of knowledge economy regions, especially around universities to drive the knowledge economy. He said such knowledge economy regions were spurred on by the development of knowledge clusters. 

Such, he noted, required wider collaboration across disciplines and specialties (inter-disciplinary approach). In addition, government must make sure that it worked together with industry and universities to make sure that there was knowledge creation, diffusion and exploitation.

Professor Du Pre outlined basic ingredients for a knowledge economy and world-class knowledge regions as a critical mass of educated persons, researchers and infrastructure. For industry, he said established industries must become more innovative and develop knowledge clusters. Another important ingredient, he added, was venture capital so that funding was provided for startups, SMEs and entrepreneurial ventures to grow business.

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