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| Vision
SANBio's vision is to utilize biosciences for socio-economic
development, particularly in terms of contributing towards
improved health, food security and sustainable livelihoods of
the people of southern Africa.
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SANBio is an intergovernmental network which falls under
the NEPAD/African Biosciences Initiative. The main objective
of the network is to build and strengthen capacity in
biosciences through exchanging ideas, promoting scientific
excellence and harnessing indigenous knowledge in order
to utilize natural resources sustainably and create wealth for
the people of Southern Africa.
SANBio is one of the four
continent–wide regional networks supported by the NEPAD
Office of Science and Technology. The other networks are:
Biosciences Eastern and Central Africa Network (BecA Net),
West Africa Biosciences Network (WAB Net); and North
Africa Biosciences Network.
Launched in 2005, and with
nodes in various institutions in member countries, SANBio is
hosted by the South African Council for Scientific and
Industrial Research (CSIR). At the same time, the council is
the network’s regional hub.
The network covers
12 countries in the sub-region which includes: Angola,
Botswana, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia,
Lesotho, Swaziland, Seychelles, Republic of South Africa,
Zambia and Zimbabwe.
- To provide a focal point for the southern African scientific community to support the activities of national, regional and international entities addressing priority problems for reducing poverty, creating wealth and promoting Africa's development;
- To create and strengthen human capital in biosciences and related disciplines in Southern Africa;
- To promote scientific excellence by bringing together a critical mass of scientists drawn from national, regional and international institutions in state-of-the-art facilities where they can undertake cutting edge research to help solve some of the most important development constraints affecting the health and well being of people in Southern Africa;
- To increase access to affordable, world-class research facilities within Southern Africa;
- To produce, manage and disseminate bioscience knowledge relevant to southern Africa's development;
- To facilitate access to advice and training on intellectual property, biosafety and regulatory issues;
- To attract investment for biosciences in and for southern Africa from governments, the private sector, and regional and international bodies; and serve as a platform for forging partnerships with other biosciences initiatives elsewhere in Africa and worldwide;
- To define relevant outputs to address regional problems through the application of bioscience technologies and the development of a technology implementation programme.
Support has been provided in cash and in kind by
participating SANBio member states. Additional support has
been received from the government of CANADA through
the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA).
The government of Finland has pledged support through the
Finnish-Southern African Partnership Programme to
strengthen SANBio Network (Biofisa).
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