Synchrotron initiative establishes permanent Nairobi office and aims to be operational by 2035 

A US$2 billion fundraising campaign has been launched to build Africa’s first synchrotron, with the goal of bringing the facility online by 2035. 

The announcement was made by African Light Source Foundation chair Simon Connell on 8 September, during a webinar on research infrastructures in the global south. The drive coincides with the opening of a permanent African Light Source office at the African Academy of Sciences in Nairobi, Kenya. The office stems from an agreement signed in December between the two, which establishes an executive committee with academy representation and provides for full-time staff. 

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The project, more than two decades in the making, aims to give African scientists access to a local synchrotron to probe the structure of materials at the atomic and molecular scale. 

“These flagship projects not only directly impact the region where they are built but also inspire a lot of young people to go into science and technology across Africa, and would drive a lot more investment,” said Guebre Tessema, outgoing programme officer at the US National Science Foundation and board member of the African Materials Research Society. 

Read full story here. Original article written by Linda Nordling and published in Research Professional News.