A paper to spotlight African RENs and UN Sustainable Development Goals

The AfricaConnect3 project communications team, in collaboration with the wider African Research and Education community, has put together a comprehensive paper collecting evidence that national and regional Research and Education Networks (RENs) present and excellent promise for accomplishing significant progress in the achievement of some of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and have proved fundamental to ensure equality in access and promotion of innovation.

The paper, which hopes to serve as a guideline for RENs to make a case of their own about their contributions to the global development agenda, follows a detailed excel report published earlier this year and mapping these very contributions to each of the 17 SDGs.

The paper includes examples of direct contributions to

• SDG 4 (Quality Education)
• SDG 5 (Gender Equality)
• SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth)
• SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure)
• SDG 13 (Climate Action)
• SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals)

and the countless spill-over effects on so many other SDGs, the so-called “multiplier effect”.

Without further delay, download the paper and start reading!

We would like to thank all the NRENs and Institutions that shared inputs on their activities and impact to create this paper.

What the CEOs of the African Regional Research and Education Networks have to say about this initiative:

UbuntuNet Alliance recognises the important role that NRENs play in accelerating progress toward the UN SDGs. This initiative will not only highlight the vital contribution of NRENs, but also empower the entire community to leverage on technology to build a better future for all Africans. – Madara Ogot, UbuntuNet Alliance CEO

RENs across Africa have for many years been contributing to achieving SDGs. It is time to step up our efforts and reap the benefits of being SDGs-aligned, through improved advocacy and better visibility. WACREN and its members are on this course. – Boubakar Barry, WACREN CEO

ASREN is proud to be collaborating with the AfricaConnect3 partners. We are taking the lead in facilitating access to scientific resources for the space and earth observation communities to enable cooperation in Africa and the achievement of the SDGs. – Yousef Torman, ASREN Managing Director

At GÉANT we firmly believe that Science and innovation knows no borders. And we partner in Africa with ASREN, UbuntuNet Alliance, and WACREN to serve research and education. As a community we proudly aim at providing steppingstones towards the world’s biggest innovations and bridging the digital divide that will benefit humanity and transform our world. – Erik Huizer, GÉANT CEO