African aid 'needs science focus' (BBC)

[eppur_se_muova]

Julian Siddle
Science in Action, BBC World Service

Neil Turok, chair of mathematical physics at Cambridge University, says governments are following the wrong policy when it comes to African aid.

Focusing on basic healthcare and primary education is stopping Africa developing, Professor Turok suggests.

The founder of the African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS) says investment in higher education is key.

He says Africa needs its own science and technology skills base to become an equal partner in the global economy.

In a wide ranging interview with the BBC World Service's Science in Action programme, Professor Turok describes his love of theoretical physics, but also talks of his dismay at what he sees as the lack of access to quality higher education in Africa.
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more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7998169.stm




Interesting article, well worth a read. Remember the "give a man a fish ..." argument?