The Sunday Mail
Sifelani Tsiko – Under the Baobab Tree
Hardly do Africans celebrate their own scientific achievements, past or present. They look outside for heroes and achievers.
The impact of colonialism and the current globalising influence of Western countries has been deep. Our minds have tilted to the extent that we can’t see our own achievements in the field of science and technology.
History is awash with Africa’s contribution to Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) to the world. Historians say STI in Africa are as old as humanity itself and have been an integral part of pre-history and evolution.
Documented evidence suggests Africa is amongst the most strategic continents in the history of STI development globally.
Analysts even contend that some of the most important technological innovations for human survival have unique African origins.
For instance, development in tool making has its root in Africa. Use of iron in smelting and forging appeared in West Africa around 1200BC, making it the birth place of the Iron Age; while investigation into space and time also began in Africa among the Nilotic people some 40 000 years ago.
Star-gazing by Nilotic people led to the invention of the calendar and the basis for modern astronomy, while the recent discovery of manuscripts at Tumbuktu in Mali has rekindled confidence Africans were already studying mathematics, astronomy, engineering, architecture, navigation and cartography at least 300 years ago.
It is arguable that Africa was pivotal in shaping global STI despite decades of being bombarded with literature that largely suggests the continent is only an importer of scientific and technical knowledge.
Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS) embedded in Africa’s cultural heritage were destroyed, denigrated or marginalised and replaced with Western views and approaches to serve the interests of European settlers.
Without slavery and colonial subjugation, Africa’s story of scientific innovation and technological advancement would have been different today.
Of course in this dot.com era, scientific knowledge and modern technologies are largely produced in the industrialised North and consumed by the global South. Africa’s productivity in science, technology and innovation today ranks amongst the lowest globally.
This has hardened negative perceptions about Africa.
Despite this, we must not lose sight of outstanding contributions to global STI development by Africans.
There is vast talent and innovation in the country, but negative perceptions, self-denial and lack of confidence remain major stumbling blocks.
Perhaps, one of the unmistakable stamps of ingenuity and technological prowess by our ancestors is the impressive Great Zimbabwe National Monument and similar sites like Danamombe, Naletale, Khami, Ziwa and Shangagwe between the Limpopo and Zambezi rivers.
Zimbabwe’s priceless dry-stone walled monuments provide useful insights into the scientific and technological achievements of early Africans whose role in the development science worldwide has been sidelined.
A visit to Great Zimbabwe, Naletale and other sites is quite refreshing and helps one’s mind to unearth significant findings related to the early African STI.
The earliest tools, use of fire, and earliest use of numbers are all innovations from Africa.
These so indicate that early African communities made significant contributions to the advancement of civilisation. The African origins of mathematics, medicine, dry-stone architecture, the early hydraulic culture of Nile Valley civilisation and the extraordinary astronomical knowledge of the Dogon people of Mali all point to the innovations of early Africans.
From the dry-stone architecture monuments in Zimbabwe, a rich repository of African civilisation, one can learn and appreciate the concepts of geometry, trigonometry, arithmetic progression, proportionality, volume and area calculations.
The magnificent and fascinating Great Zimbabwe and Naletale monuments show the extensive mathematical, engineering and mechanical achievements of early African communities.
Archaeological findings at the sites show that the early people who lived at these sites had a deep appreciation of concepts of terracing, stone clearance, soil tillage, and conservation of soils on valleys and hill slopes.
It is also quite evident, that there were permanent village complexes, livestock keeping, established pottery and metallurgical industries.
Entrance into the pits and the Great Enclosure at Great Zimbabwe was through lintel tunnels and every pit had a drain hole to prevent flooding. The terraces, archaeologists say, point to very intensive and specialised agricultural practices.
The use of geometric designs at the site also shows mathematical, engineering and mechanical innovations of during the Iron Age.
The Great Zimbabwe Monument showcases the finest architectural construction on account of its monolith decorations, solid stone conical turrets and an entrance incorporating lintels.
Some archaeologists say Great Zimbabwe is the world’s most spectacular piece of engineering.
Midlands State University archaeologist Dr Munyaradzi Manyanga says Zimbabwe needs to take practical steps to strengthen action to safeguard its archaeological monuments which are threatened by accidental damage or structural deterioration due to insufficient management, neglect and abandonment.
He says the country needs to mobilise national authorities, development partners, the culture professions and customs and police to prioritise cultural heritage protection and management.
“A number of cultural heritage sites are in a bad state due to neglect and abandonment. Some sites have no one managing them.
“We have a duty to pass these heritage sites to future generations. If we neglect these sites then we have reneged on our duty on inter-generational equity.”
Southern Zimbabwe has more than 60 archaeological sites while the country’s central part has a cluster of 28 stonewalled sites requiring constant maintenance to keep them in good order and reverse the effects of wind, rain, storm, and the damage inflicted by colonising plants and animals.
But most sites suffer neglect.
“Zimbabwe must develop a comprehensive set of programmes to protect our cultural heritage sites through a well-funded, co-ordinated response for recovery and rehabilitation,”
Dr Manyanga says.
“Neglect of the inheritance of the past robs future generations of a powerful legacy and undermines our efforts to protect our common heritage.”
Work is in progress on restoration of Naletale Monument, which was placed on the UNESCO World’s Monument Watch list in 2012 as a site in danger of deteriorating and losing its original integrity.
Work to reverse the deterioration and collapse of the site’s unique stone walls started in February 2014 with a team of 32 people drawn from MSU, National Museums and Monuments of Zimbabwe and the local community.
Archaeologists say Zimbabwe’s unique and priceless cultural assets provide a basis for national identity, scientific and historical research, sustainable tourism, and other economic development opportunities for future generations.
And, in many ways, the country’s cultural heritage sites obliterate the picture of the African being backward and contributing nothing of significance to the evolution of civilisation.
Inspired by pre-historical achievements, Africa must build her own critical mass of indigenous scientific, technological and innovative capacity.
In 2007, Dr Olivia Muchena, a Cabinet minister, remarked: “We have the creative gene, all we need to do is to look at the Great Zimbabwe Monument. The creativity of our ancestors is a source of inspiration for us.
“We want to inspire the young generation, to create in them a science culture rooted on science soil.”
