Innovation financing and public policy dilemmas in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)

Abstract

As part of efforts to change the structure of economies in sub-Saharan Africa from agrarian dominated to a more diversified one that will add value to exports and create more job opportunities, countries in the region have intensified strategies through its regional bloc – the African Union (AU) with its eight sub-regional bodies. Such a feat is only plausible through a concerted approach targeted at achieving sustainable economic growth laden with higher output turnover. This paper therefore takes a critical look at sub-regional governments’ intent in the implementation of science, technology and innovation (STI) across countries in the ECOWAS by focusing on three policy instruments (institutional framework, financing and diffusion and interaction) and how these instruments have led to building technological capability economies. Empirical evidence gathered from secondary sources indicates among other things that sub-regional governments have invested in the establishment of public institutions to support STI. That notwithstanding existing technology-capability indicators illustrates the results are far from expectation. The paper further discusses the dilemmas sub-regional governments have had to deal with in the design and implementation of STI plans.