Accra (Greater Accra), 28 Jan.'99 -

Mr Cletus Avoka, Minister of Environment Science and Technology (MEST), today charged the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) to embark on an intensive awareness campaign to highlight the council's crucial role in national development. The Minister said this is "important, as we need to erase the impression among many people in the society, who seem to have the notion that the CSIR as an institution, constitute a drain on the national economy rather than as an asset". Mr Avoka, who said this during a familiarisation visit to the CSIR in Accra, noted that the ministry is "yearning for an appropriate science and technology framework" within which to operate to achieve the goals of Vision 2020. Mr Avoka, said the CSIR has assisted in so many research activities aimed at poverty alleviation, introduced communities to income-generating activities through the use of appropriate technologies and promoted sustainable development in the country, among other things. The Minister said the Council has assisted the Ministry in coming out with a draft science and technology policy, which is currently being considered by Cabinet for legislation. He noted that the success of the activities of the council rests primarily on adequate resources, adding that the the commercialisation process going on in the council is aimed at overcoming over-dependence on the government. He called for transparency on the part of staff of the council in order to solve some of their financial problems. The Minister urged all the agencies under the Ministry to evolve better co-ordination of their activities to promote optimal utilisation of resources generated. Professor Walter Alhassan, Director-General of CSIR, said the council is at the moment under-going structural reform to re-oreint itself to meet the challenges of commercialisation, adding that they are targetting the private sector to market their services. Professor Alhassan mentioned the National Agricultural Research Project, Private Sector Development Project, UNDP Capacity Development and the Utilisation Project as the major on-going donor projects and the Trinet project as the newest to be funded by a 53,000 euro grant to the council. He said this new project will involve the use of low earth orbiting satellite technology for communication with geographically remote stations through computer and radio. Through this, E-mail facilities can reach remote stations with no communication facilities, adding that the three satellite earth stations will be located in Accra, Manga and a place yet to be decided. On the council's achievement, the director-general said the Food Research Institute has developed various technologies to minimize post- harvest losses and have been able to add value to food crops and animal products among other things.