Prof. Shaukat Abdulrazak, the Principal Secretary in the State Department for Research, Science and Innovation, has pointed out the need to embed research and innovation more deeply to speed up socio-economic transformation through the blue economy.
While speaking at the closing of the three-day Blue Economy Innovation and Investment Summit held by Sote Hub in Mombasa, Prof. Abdulrazak, said to the youth, “Don’t miss the wonderful opportunities of funding available through the Kenya National Innovation Agency, the National Research Fund, and other financial institutions.” “The blue economy has a lot of potentials to provide a solution to the problem of unemployment and at the same time generate wealth for the country.
However, to get the best out of this, we have to mix research with innovations and come up with proper commercialization strategies,” he said.
The PS urged the innovators to come up with products that can easily identify with the community needs thus the research success depends on the ability of the researchers to take their idea to the market in form of products and services.
Additionally he said that these should not be mere words but serious strategies that can change the potential of the sector into socio-economic benefits, which can then be shared among the communities across the country.
At the summit, various stakeholders such as policymakers, investors, and innovators got a platform to discuss the opportunities that could be tapped in fisheries, marine transport, coastal tourism, and other related industries under a blue economy framework.