A delegation from the Kingdom of Lesotho is attending the Eighth African Regional Science, Technology and Innovation Forum currently underway in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
The delegation is led by the Principal Secretary of the Ministry of Information, Communications, Science, Technology and Innovation, Kanono Ramashamole. The Forum is running under the theme: “Achieving progress towards the 2030 Agenda and Agenda 2063 through transformative and coordinated actions in science, technology, and digital innovation.”
The gathering brings together policymakers, experts and stakeholders from across the African continent to review progress on key Sustainable Development Goals, particularly Goals 6, 7, 9, 11 and 17. It also seeks to identify practical ways to scale up implementation, strengthen peer learning and promote coordinated solutions that can speed up progress towards both the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and Agenda 2063. 
Lesotho’s delegation is attending with a specific purpose: to learn from other countries on practical steps to strengthen Science, Technology and Innovation policy and, more critically, its implementation on the ground. While Lesotho has made progress in building policy frameworks, including the Science and Research Act of 2021, the country’s focus has now shifted to turning those frameworks into real, measurable outcomes.
Lesotho is also working to move away from being primarily a consumer of global policy and towards becoming an active co-creator. That shift was reflected in remarks by Ramashamole during the closing ceremony of the 64th Council Meeting of the Commonwealth Telecommunications Organisation, where he spoke about the importance of influencing global decisions that affect national development.
Much of the day’s discussions centred on Digital Public Infrastructure and Artificial Intelligence as tools for accelerating progress towards the 2030 Agenda and Agenda 2063. Delegates examined how these technologies can drive inclusive growth, improve service delivery and build stronger innovation ecosystems.
The outgoing Chair of the Bureau, a minister from Uganda responsible for science, along with the incoming Chair from Ethiopia, both pointed to the central role of science and technology in national development. The two ministers shared examples from their own countries showing how targeted investments, institutional coordination and policy alignment can turn science and technology ambitions into development results that can be measured.
