The achievement of Zambia’s Vision 2030 will depend on spurring innovation in firms and industries, developing financial support for science, technology and innovation (STI) activities, and strengthening the education system.
To effectively harness STI for development, Zambia will need to strengthen the implementation of STI policies and boost its STI capabilities. The key challenge will be to strengthen policy coordination and political visibility for STI, with particular emphasis on the innovation element of the science-technology-innovation triad. The COVID-19 pandemic has weakened Zambia’s capacity to respond to the pressing challenges in STI and in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) more generally. Recovery strategies will need to allocate resources and policy attention to nurturing and strengthening the actors in the national innovation system and enabling their interactions.