CSIR organises science contest to mark 60th anniversary

Published in the Daily Graphic on 30/12/2009, pg 19

Story: Matilda Attram
THE competition which gave opportunities to the public to explore their creativity in science and technological innovations involved 60 participants.
They included small-scale self-employed individuals with interest in innovation for development and researchers in any CSIR research institution in the country.
The competition was to raise recognition for science, technology and innovation, as well as encourage their importance for national development.
As part of the requirements for the competition, participants were expected to present innovative scientific equipment and documentaries in the form of engineering devices, electronic equipment, agricultural machinery, a new crop variety, a new animal breed, new process of production, among others, that would improve on development.
At an awards ceremony to climax the competition, the Director for Science, Technology and Policy Research of the CSIR, Dr George Owusu Essegbey, noted that the role of innovation in the socio-economic advancement of nations had become important in the 21st century, since innovation increased the pace of development.
He said Ghana’s efforts at attaining a middle-income status could be greatly facilitated when attention to innovation was considered in its socio-economic activities.
He used the opportunity to appeal to the government and stakeholders to ensure that socio-economic activities were fused with scientific and technological contents, as well as encourage innovation in all aspects of national life.
The Director-General of the CSIR, Mr Abdulai Baaba, in his remarks, said science and technology played important roles in the development of all nations and so they needed a major investment.
He said investment in science and technology promoted development in all activities and must be carefully considered.
He commended participants for their efforts and entreated all scientific institutions to establish science and technology fairs and activities in second-cycle institutions to enhance the potential of the youth for development.
Colonel Abakah Jackson, a scientist, received the first prize of a laptop and an unspecified amount of money for the invention of a flapping turbine to generate electricity.
Colonel Jackson shared the first position with Mr Nicholas Denwar, a researcher at CSIR, who also took home a laptop and an unspecified amount for a documentary on how to improve soya bean harvest in the country.
The second prize of an unspecified amount went to Mr Bawa Adulasi, another small-scale scientist, and Dr Kwesi Atokple, a researcher at CSIR, for inventing an incubator and producing a documentary on increasing cow pea production, respectively.
The third prize went to two people, Captain Victor Batse, a scientist, for the invention of a multi-purpose cook ware and a collapsible mosquito net, and Mr Samuel Obiri, a researcher at CSIR, for his documentary on how to control fluoride in Bongo.