The National Council for Science & Technology requires at least 2% of the country’s GDP, estimated at Ksh 60 billion to fund research and new innovations in order to actualize the economic goals envisaged in the Vision 2030 blueprint.

The Council’s Chief Executive Prof Shaukat Abdulrazak, while calling upon local researchers to take advantage of the sh400 million kitty available to them observes that Kenya only stands a chance to grow economically if research and innovations in science and technology are well funded by the government.

He said that for the country to be globally competitive, with its Gross Domestic Product growing at projected rates, the government needed to prioritize science, technology and innovations to transform Kenya from a product economy to one that is knowledge based.

Speaking at Moi University’s School of Medicine during a sensitization workshop for Academia & Civil Societies on matters of science and technology, the CEO said Kenya had lagged behind compared to her economic peers like Singapore and Malaysia for failure to embrace research and innovative minds.

Abdulrazak also called for good leadership, with science advisors right from the president and at the devolved government levels to harness the enormous resources presented by science, technology and innovations instead of relying on agriculture and tourism for generation of revenue.

He disclosed that the Council, through its Ksh400 million fund, had sponsored 139 PhD’s, 46 Masters’ as well as supporting Kenyan Scientists, researchers and innovators in terms of research projects and innovation works.

The CEO however cautioned against embezzlement of the research funds by asking scholars to stick to their stipulated work plans and budgets as opposed to buying themselves sleek cars and building posh houses.

Abdulrazak was also quick to mention that the Council also sponsors innovators at Secondary School levels as well as science congress fetes at all education levels to demystify science and technology and inform society about this line of the economy.