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Indigenous knowledge for sustainable development:
National Strategy and Framework of Action

by Zerubabel Mijumbi Nyiira

Dr Z.M. Nyiira is a biologist and researcher in insect science. He is the Executive Secretary of the Uganda National Council for Science and Technology (UNCST) and National Coordinator for the Acacia National Programme. He is also the Coordinator of the Programme on the Development of Indigenous Knowledge for Sustainable Development and Chairman of the Committee on Natural Resources, Science and Technology of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UN-ECA).

On 8-9 December 1999, a workshop was held in Kampala, Uganda to formulate a national strategy and framework of action for the sustainable application of indigenous knowledge for development. The delegates represented the public sector, NGOs, community-based organizations, and the scientific community. After two days of deliberation, the delegates finalized the text of the strategy document.

The strategy developed for Uganda is aimed at empowering local communities to utilize, exchange, develop, and protect indigenous knowledge (IK) and to promote its application within the development process. It encompasses the establishment of a system of national and international coordination and cooperation, and the design of mechanisms to promote the use of IK in development.

One of the main objectives of the national strategy is the creation of an institutional framework for development. As stakeholders, the various national and international institutions will forge collaborative partnerships and develop mechanisms for the use of IK for socioeconomic development.

The promotion of traditional and local knowledge has important policy implications. For this reason, the workshop devoted special consideration to the importance to such issues as national legislation designed to preserve and disseminate indigenous knowledge; the reinforcement of the human resource capacity needed to develop IK; and the drafting of an institutional approach to national IK development.

The Uganda National Council for Science and Technology, as lead agent, was entrusted with follow-up action plans. One of the most significant steps taken up to now was the creation of a high-level inter-institutional Steering Committee to assist in identifying and formulating activities, building consensus, and coordinating fund-raising efforts.

With regard to funding, the national strategy will focus on the initiation and implementation of programmes and activities. The major funding mechanisms include mobilizing national funds for collaborative programmes, encouraging co-sponsorship by donor agencies (through co-funding or special grants projects), establishing trust funds, and promoting private-sector partnerships. Institutions such as the National Foundation for Research and Development (NFRD) have a global mandate to promote the advancement of scientific knowledge, and are already actively seeking funding for key programmes covered by national IK strategy. One such programme area is traditional knowledge and biodiversity conservation.

The vision, the national strategy, and the practical framework of action designed to promote the sustainable use of indigenous knowledge for development in Uganda are set out in the Kampala Declaration on indigenous knowledge for sustainable development. This declaration, which is reprinted on the inside back cover of this issue of the Monitor, reflects the importance which the workshop delegates attach to indigenous knowledge for the social, cultural and economic development of local communities.

PHOTO:

Dr. Z.M. Nyiira

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