African countries, taken separately, or grouped together as a unit, still largely remain resource-based economies. The challenge is to change the resource-based economic structure into a science, technology, engineering and innovation driven knowledge based economic system. Taking this challenge head on means African countries have to organise their science, technology, engineering and innovation for a development agenda systematically, more in collaboration than in competition with one another. What appears to remain a defi cit is the vast collaborative distance that still exists on matters of critical importance to the economic transformation of Africa.