IJPSD

ISSN: 2360-784X

 International Journal of Political Science and Development
 

International Journal of Political Science and Development

Vol. 7(4), pp. 109-131, June, 2019. 

DOI: 10.14662/IJPSD2019.060

ISSN: 2360-784X

Research

The Political Dimensions of Science Consciousness in Africa

Technics Ikechi Nwosu

The African Science Fiction Project, Owerri, Nigeria. Email: frontpagetechnics@gmail.com

Accepted 27 May 2019

This paper explores the concept of science consciousness in the national life of African states. The publics in African states interact with new creations of science in the form of products imported from the developed countries, yet no one cares to communicate to these publics how such artefacts were arrived at – the science in simplified language behind such products as well as the intrigues (political, social, and even religious) that played out before such artefacts became reality. In this way, the general public in Africa does not flow with the science and politics of science behind the emergence of technological artefacts and new inventions which are sold to them as finished products. Each artefact of science tells a story that expands our science awareness and inspires the average mind. More rudimentarily, African governments have weak institutions that promote the knowledge of some science among the public or the masses and where private organizations which can perform this function exist the governments do not know what to do with them. In Africa today, science still exists only in the laboratory. For science to get into the cultures of African societies, it must first get into the everyday language of the people through whatever means. For science to take proper root in Africa, it must stop being a ‘government thing’ in every instance and must get into the common language and conversation of the people. This way the people will own science. The best root is the deepest root which science will develop in Africa through the masses. Building the science consciousness quotient of the African masses amounts to building the foundation for the emergence of technological African states.  Science fiction is the simplest method to penetrate the intelligence of the masses to achieve the critical mass of science-thinking and science consciousness required to propel African countries unto the path of the scientific state. The paper invokes and thereon adopts Snow’s scientism – that is scientism as formulated by C.P. Snow in his discourses on the Scientific Revolution.

Keywords: science consciousness, scientism, democratization of science, domestication of science, technological independence, public engagement with science and technology, anticipatory regime.

Cite this article as: Nwosu TI (2019). The Political Dimensions of Science Consciousness in Africa. Int. J. Polit. Sci. Develop. 7(4) 109-131