Growing confidence of Africa’s chemical societies brings chemistry’s benefits to continent
Chemistry organisations on the continent are looking to professionalise and get involved in setting standards in their home countries
A significant moment for chemistry in Africa took place in May when students in Liberia held the country’s first chemistry symposium. It offered the first significant opportunity for Liberia’s chemistry community to come together to discuss important issues.
‘This was a historic day for us. The 14-year civil war through [to] 2003 pretty much erased science infrastructure – not just chemistry,’ says Adam Kallon, a Liberian chemistry teacher and symposium convenor. At the launch over 700 students gathered at the country’s Bong County University. Liberia’s students don’t just want to study chemistry to improve their job prospects, Kallon explains, they also want to help protect their country ‘from counterfeit pharmaceuticals to toxic mining practices’.