PART II: Technology and scientific knowledge transfer

Title: Biotechnology Knowledge Transfer between the Hammer of Resources and the Oak of the Terrorist Threat

Author(s): Shadia Omar

Address: Queen|s University Belfast, Ireland

Reference: First Sudanese Diaspora International Conference - 2009 pp. 51 - 60

Abstract/Summary: This paper proposes scientific and systematic analyses to the current problems that facing the transfer of the Biotechnology Knowledge in Sudan. Sudan is included in the terrorist countries and been suspected for long time for growing interest in Bio-weapons, therefore Sudan has been prevented from gaining the knowledge and means to develop biotechnology applications particularly in Biology and Nuclear Biotechnology. This prevention could not be announced or in written declarations because it will be against the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and it is worth to mention that USA has not signed the CBD. The paper studies other problems that have their impact on Biotechnology development in Sudan such as economic problems and government commitment towards research fund and developing manpower's skills. Sudan has a wide range of biodiversity which enables the country to enter the era of third generation biotechnology, however it failed to manage those resources because of the slow profit turnover and that the government has depended heavily on the oil industry. In general, the country lacks sustainable and basic laboratories with the essential skills and facilities for research and diagnosis. The research output has decreased dramatically, the libraries budget consisted entirely of salaries and wages and the research funding and academic staff are at very low level particularly among females. The dual use dilemma and the reasons of listing Sudan as Bio-threat have been explained in the paper. The paper also includes suggestion on how to improve and enable the environment for biodiversity conservation which would include the government political goodwill for the cause of biodiversity and to remove Sudan from the terrorist list, sufficient job opportunities and undertaking and considering financial resources and financial mechanisms.

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