Building a Pan-African synchrotron is as much a political endeavour as a scientific one. Over nearly two decades, the African Light Source (AfLS) has steadily gathered continental endorsement, moving from a single line in a research strategy to formal calls of support by the African Union and its member states.
RoadmapThe political journey toward an African Light Source
The momentum behind the African Light Source has been built milestone by milestone, with each step adding institutional and governmental weight to the initiative. The timeline below traces that path of growing political support.
2002 — The first formal call, by the African Laser Centre
The first formal call for a Pan-African Light Source was recorded in the 2002 Strategy and Business Plan of the aspirant African Laser Centre (ALC), which was then established the following year. This early call is described by S.K. Mtingwa and H. Winick in “Synchrotron light sources in developing countries”, published in Modern Physics Letters A 33/9 (2018) 1830003.
2015 — African Union Declaration and Action Plan
The Declaration and Action Plan of the 1st African Higher Education Summit on Revitalizing Higher Education for Africa’s Future (Dakar, Senegal, 10–12 March 2015) gave the initiative continental backing. Article 5.3.3, on page 22, recommends establishing a Synchrotron as a centralized African scientific facility.
2015 & 2019 — AfLS1 and AfLS2 Conferences
The African Light Source Conferences, held in 2015 and 2019, each included dedicated Strategy and Policy Sessions that advanced the political aspects of the Roadmap, building consensus among scientists, institutions and policymakers across the continent.
African UnionEndorsement at the highest levels
2017 — AfLS presented to the AU STC-EST
The African Academy of Sciences made a presentation on the African Light Source to the Specialized Technical Committee on Education, Science and Technology of the African Union (STC-EST) on 20 October 2017 in Egypt. Member states were called upon to support the initiative.
2018 — African Union Executive Council
The African Union Executive Council, at its Thirty-Second Ordinary Session held 25–26 January 2018 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, formally called upon Member States to support the Pan-African Synchrotron Initiative.
The African Union Executive Council CALLS UPON Member States to support the Pan-African Synchrotron Initiative.
National LeadershipA champion among nations
2019 — Ghana will champion the African Light Source
In January 2019, Ghana committed to championing the African Light Source, with President Akufo-Addo lending the country’s leadership to the cause. Ghana’s pledge marked a milestone in translating continental endorsement into national political ownership of the initiative.
From a single line to continental backing
What began as one recommendation in a 2002 strategy document has grown into endorsements by the African Union’s highest bodies and a national pledge to champion the project — the political foundation on which the African Light Source Roadmap is being built.