Connecting anthropology with science leaders and policy-makers in Uganda
Most research carried out by African scientists in Africa is funded by foreign donors and carried out in collaboration with foreign research partners. An important research question for the anthropology of science is how do such economic and institutional arrangements influence the kinds of scientific knowledge that are produced on the continent, and what interests does such knowledge production serve?
(Image removed) Eren Zink, Researcher in Cultural Anthropology, was invited to share findings from his research studying international science collaborations in medicine and agriculture, with leaders in Ugandan science and higher education. The well-attended research seminar was chaired by Hon. Kafeero Ssekitoleko Robert, Chairperson of the Parliamentary Committee on Science and Technology, and hosted by the Uganda National Council for Science and Technology in Kampala. Following the presentation thirty participants, including leaders from a number of government, university and research institutions, discussed how Uganda could better leverage the agency of its institutions and individual scientists to promote international research collaborations that more specifically address local challenges.
Eren’s research in Uganda, Ghana and Zimbabwe is an ongoing project at our department that is funded by the Swedish Research Council.