The Board of Directors of the African Academy of Sciences (AAS): The Governing Council (GC) convened in Nairobi, Kenya for a four-day strategic planning meeting from 1-4 September 2023 to map out their three-year strategy to grow the Academy and position it as Africa’s leading continental body dedicated to advancing science, technology, and innovation (STI) on the continent. 
 
The strategic planning meeting was led by Professor Lise Korsten, the first female president of the AAS and chair of the Governing Council, who shared her vision to have a strong, dedicated Governing Council that will take AAS to new heights, build trust and respect within the Secretariat, and develop a turnaround strategy. 
 
Each member of the Governing Council took turns in sharing their vision for the Academy and their plans to ensure growth in the number of Fellows and Affiliates who join the AAS.
 
The strategic planning meeting featured an insightful training on Corporate Governance led by Rosemary Ngure, an esteemed Corporate Governance Consultant based in Kenya. She facilitated discussions with the Governing Council on how they can improve the AAS governance structures, practices, and processes to align with international best practice in governance.
 
A second training on Strategic Planning was led by Dr Geoffrey Otieno from Enreal Limited. He outlined the importance of strategic planning for AAS, and emphasized that visibility, innovative fundraising, sustainability, and impact assessment are key areas to focus on to develop a robust strategy.
 
The four-day meeting follows the recent appointment of the Governing Council in July 2023 and set the stage for the Academy’s future direction, providing a melting pot of ideas and strategies that promised to steer the AAS towards a positive future.
 
 
To view photos of the strategic planning visit the AAS Flickr account.