The Director General, Economics, Science and Technology, UK, Explores Further Collaboration with KNUST

Kumar Iyer CMG, the Director General (DG), Economics, Science and Technology at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), UK, visited KNUST on 3rd October 2023 to discuss the UK-GHANA Science, Technology and Innovation (ST&I) strategy, aimed to increase the number, quality and impact of UK-Ghana ST&I partnerships.

He paid a courtesy call on the Vice-Chancellor, KNUST, Prof. Mrs Rita Akosua Dickson, where he explained the four pillars of strategy as ecosystem coordination, knowledge and skill sharing, partnership co-creation and commercialisation

The DG reiterated that the strategy is to bring all existing collaborations together, focusing on commercialisation and scaling up research outputs. “We see KNUST as a key part of this collaboration with the Dipper Lab, the Responsible AI Lab and the Climate Compatible Growth (CCG) initiatives.”

Prof. Dickson mentioned that as the leading Science and Technology University in Ghana, KNUST has a philosophy of solving societal problems through impactful research and commercialisation. “Let us continue to build on the long-lasting relationship and collaboration. Regarding ST&I, we are poised to continue building on this relationship and partnership to ensure that we win together. We are ready, willing, able, capable and poised to work with our partners in this journey,” she asserted. The DG revealed that the partnership is about research, the environment, and how some emerging technologies develop. He said funding opportunities are being worked on to support the activities of the Responsible AI lab, whose focus is making AI safe and responsible. He added that Sesi Technologies is being supported with commercialisation, and a fund to invest in smaller companies is also being set up.

Prof. Kwabena Biritwum Nyarko, Provost, College of Engineering, mentioned that the College’s mission aligns with the strategic partnership to advance knowledge in Science, Technology and Innovation. The DG said that as the UK and Ghana renew their commitments to advancing ST&I, a sustainable partnership with mutual respect, transparency, and shared knowledge is built.

Prof. Jerry John Kponyo, Principal Investigator and Scientific Director, RAIL, said research must impact lives, which is the lab’s mandate. 

“Every research we engage in must add value to society,” he said. He mentioned that the lab conducts research activities in AI in Health, AI in Energy, AI in Agriculture and the responsible or ethical use of AI. “We have worked with other collaborators to develop a framework through which we can quantitatively measure how responsible a solution is, and we encourage AI researchers and experts in the ecosystem to adopt the FACETS framework,” he stated.

The team visited the Responsible AI Lab, The Dipper Lab (the Blockchain Lab) and the KNUST College Innovation Centre.