The NEPAD/African Biosciences Initiative is being implemented through regional networks of laboratories and technoparks that are involved in carrying out cutting edge research and development and in transferring biosciences technologies. A regional network approach has been adopted where institutions have made their resources available to address common problems that impinge on the region in the areas of human health, crop and livestock production, environmental management, and bio-prospecting, etc.

Four regional networks have been established throughout the continent

• Southern African Network for Biosciences (SANBio)
  Based at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in South Africa
  
  
• Biosciences East and Central Africa (BECA)
  Based at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) in Kenya
  
  
• West African Biosciences Network (WABNet)
  Based at the Institut Sénégalais de Recherches Agricoles (ISRA) in Senegal
  
  
• North African Biosciences Network (NABNet)
  Based at the National Research Centre in Egypt

A network comprises of a hub and nodes spread throughout the region. The hub is an institution that is involved in cutting edge research and has critical mass of expertise that is actively involved in research and development while nodes are institutions that are also actively involved in research and have expertise that provide unique skills and research facilities to complement the capacity of the hub. This arrangement allows institutions in the region to address problems that require a pool of human, physical and financial resources.