Research, Innovation and Indigenous Knowledge in Sub-Saharan Africa: In Search of a Nexus

Abstract

This paper attempts to establish a relationship between the low levels of innovation experienced across Africa south of the Sahara with the absence of indigenous knowledge in the education curriculum and in the continent’s research and development agenda. Indigenous knowledge is the most easily accessible knowledge for most Africans; it is also a variant of knowledge of which several Africans have in-depth information. However, indigenous knowledge has been left out of classrooms and other organized teaching, learning and research platforms in the continent mainly due to the colonial foundations of education and the contemporary realities of continued dependence on external actors for education funding. Innovation, on its part, often occurs when an individual is equipped with in-depth and easily accessible knowledge of a particular field and/or locale. This study explores the concept of innovation and examines the experiences of nations with high levels of innovation, and establishes that indigenous or home-grown knowledge is foundational for innovation to thrive. It reaches the conclusion that the recognition of indigenous knowledge in formal, informal and non-formal education and research in Africa is foundational for creating a generation of Africans who are innovators and inventors, and who are self-motivated to conduct research on issues affecting the continent.