Africa Must Stop Outsourcing Innovation – UG Humanities Provost
By: Solomon Nartey Tetteh
Africa must make a bold shift from outsourcing innovation to establishing homegrown systems to solve its problems.
Over the years, Africa’s heavy reliance on Western countries has weakened the continent’s own creative potential.
Speaking at the opening of the 2025 Regional Innovation Synergies Conference (RISC) in Accra, The Provost of the College of Humanities at the University of Ghana, Professor Awetori Yaro, highlighted that Ghana and Africa at large are rich in innovative thinkers from rural processing entrepreneurs and climate-focused ventures to student inventors and policy leaders. He stressed that what remains missing is synergy.
“We are not short of brilliant minds, but we have lacked a coordinated system that identifies, supports and scales innovation,” he said.
Prof. Yaro noted that sustainable development thrives when ideas converge and institutions avoid working in isolation.
According to the Provost, these initiatives highlight the impact of connecting diverse actors around a common mission. He pointed to ongoing support for young innovators addressing food and nutrition needs, as well as the university’s efforts to transfer research-based technologies to rural communities, improving food processing, product certification and sustainable enterprise growth.
“These achievements reflect the work of researchers, facilitators, innovation leaders, students and community partners across the country, but they also speak to a broader agenda operationalising the University of Ghana’s five-year strategic plan,” he said.
Prof. Yaro commended students and young innovators who are contributing as “co-creators of knowledge,” recalling how childhood ingenuity such as building toy cars and trains from simple materials shows that Ghana’s creative potential has always been evident.
He added that research at the university is now being applied more practically, especially in climate and technology transfer projects, ensuring academic work no longer “gathers dust on shelves.
He also revealed that efforts are also underway to commercialise research results, turning prototypes into enterprises and converting knowledge into economic value to strengthen the university’s long-term financial sustainability.
“RISC 2025 is not just aligned with our strategic plan. It is bringing it to life. Let us leave here with new partnerships, commitments and pathways that accelerate innovation for job creation, community strengthening and national transformation,” he said.
Prof. Yaro also announced a deliberate campaign by the College of Humanities to deepen collaboration with industry and government, emphasising that supportive policy environments are essential to nurturing innovation.
He reaffirmed the university’s commitment to promoting initiatives that translate knowledge into opportunity and enterprise.
