Africa needs its own indicators of scientific innovation

Africa must develop measures of science, technology and innovation (STI) activity that accurately reflect African economies and experiences that are likely to be neglected because existing methods to capture them are lacking. In particular, we need to understand how to convert beneficial technologies into tangible benefits in Africa, and how to capture traditional as well as modern knowledge.

Agriculture straddles the formal and informal economies. It also draws on both modern and traditional knowledge. The STI indicators used must capture this duality of knowledge systems, as well as the informality of the economic activity.

Another major gap in Africa's STI system is the lack of specialised capabilities for innovation — the process of converting knowledge to tangible benefits for people and communities.
http://www.scidev.net/en/opinions/africa-needs-its-own-indicators-of-scientific-innovation.html