Africa has always being left behind with respect to technological development and when it is the issue of sustainable practice it is even more critical. Sustainable practice with respect to road transport development in Africa is still far fetched. An overview of the best and sustainable practice remains to be a challenge for the future of road transport. But sustainable transport within the framework of overall sustainable development is a clear target for all. The situation is even clearer when the unpaved roads within Southern African Development Community (SADC) are about 70% of the total network, posing another challenge to development. The process of openly gaining and freely sharing experiences, solutions, technologies, and innovation has come to be understood as technology transfer. Technology transfer is not simply information dissemination and passively waiting for its use. Technology Transfer or T2 in the context of roads is a more active term that describes both a mission and innovation to improve the roads. In Africa Technology Transfer Centres have been established to facilitate sharing of experiences and best practices. The first centre to be established was in South Africa by the South Africa Department of Transport in 1995 followed by the Tanzania T2 centre in 1997. Others to follow suit are Zimbabwe in 2000, CSIR and Kwa Zulu Natal both from South Africa and established in 2000, and Malawi in 2001. Namibia and Zambia will be established in 2003 as well as Botswana which is yet to be operational. The first six are known to be working while the others have received equipment and will be operational soon. This paper discusses the overview of the Africa's road transport and links it to the Technology Transfer Centre project under PIARC. The paper further discusses the effectiveness of the centre with respect to the future and as springboards for other African T2 Centres. The status of the Tanzania Technology Transfer Centre and its participation in PIARC will be discussed and reported. The most profound contribution to the establishment of the Malawi and Zimbabwe T2 centres will be highlighted. Achievements made so far will be explained and recommendations on how to improve further the use of the centre. The linkages with other Centres will be emphasized and recommended. Finally the paper will highlight the need for other African countries to be encouraged to be active on technology transfer issues through establishment of Technology Transfer Centres. For the covering abstract see ITRD E135448.
Samenvatting