African Technology ForumSM
The Information
Source for Science and Technology in
Manufacturing And
Construction
Volume 6 No. 3
FEATURES - Manufacturing & Construction
Young Entrepreneurs in Cameroun
Transform the Local Economy
Jean-Jacques Mebiame
This article presents the efforts
of a few young Camerounian graduates from L'Ecole Polytechnique de Yaounde who
are manufacturing laterite bricks and parabolic dish antennas.
Construction in Africa:
Challenges Facing the Industry
Kofi Ayeke
A cursory glance at the
construction industry in most African countries presents a gloomy picture for
the continent. Ayeke discusses the technologies of equipment, materials, and
human and financial resources needed to cope with new construction
technologies.
Labor Intensive Construction
R. T. McCutcheon
A research program in development
engineering carried out by the Department of Civil Engineering at the
University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, South Africa. This is a broad
overview of the whole program with a focus on the particular research where the
greatest progress had been made to date.
Adventures in a Mud Hut
Ikem Stanley Okoye
Okoye challenges the assumption
that Africa's building 'tradition' is at best one that changes slowly, accepts
innovation reluctantly, and restricts itself to the simple and formulaic.
Creating a Small Scale Edible
Oils Industry
Jonathan Otto
During the course of a five-week
mission, a two-man technical team from ATI developed a ram press that was
easier to use for the women of Haraba, in one of the first consulting missions
of ATI's Regional OILS Project.
Technical Details of the Ram
Press
Mawuli Tse
Manufacturing Research in South
Africa
Ronel Nel and Cecilia de Vos
The "hunter-gatherer"
ability is well-developed in South Africa. If a need for a specific product is
identified and agreed on, South African industry excels at finding and
implementing the technology to produce it.
Opinion
Editors notes
Telecommunications: A Critical
Analysis
Silvio Tavares
Tavares reviews the current state
of telecommunication systems in Africa and proposes future general approaches
for telecommunications development.
Preserving Africa's Biodiversity
T.M. Crowe
The Fitzpatrick Institute's
Conservation Biology program was presented at a recent conference held in
Nairobi, Kenya.
Transforming Foreign Technology
Into Indigenous Capabilities
F. E. Ogbimi
The adoption of an appropriate
national development strategy is very important for a nation because it
determines whether society achieves rapid and timely economic development, or
experiences untold hardship. This article suggests a strategy that would
facilitate rapid technological development in Nigeria.
Information Systems
Why Governments Need Access to
Computer Network (Part 1)
George Sadowsky
Individuals and organizations
working toward international connectivity for their countries need to
demonstrate how such connectivity will address directly the needs of government
ministries and will contribute to achieving the development objectives of the
country.
Computer Networks and African
Studies Centers
Patricia S. Kuntz
This paper argues that the twelve
African Studies Centers funded by the U.S. Department of Education should be on
the "cutting edge" of contemporary electronic communication.
Agriculture
Pottery: A New Technology for
the Preservation of Fruits & Vegetables
Victor O. Aimiuwu and Sweet
Ebeigbe
Mention a new technology for
storing food, and most people would immediately think of refrigeration, cold
storage, or expensive mechanized canning methods. One way to reduce the
problems of cost and availability is to employ traditional clay vessels for
food storage. This is possible based on an understanding of the mechanism of
evaporative cooling and the structure of clay.
The Physical and Chemical Nature
of Clay
Tech Notes
Surviving Future Droughts- The
Cassava Strategy
UN Places US in Third World
Science in Africa: Women Leading
from strength
Computer Training School Comes
to Soweto
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