Opening Ceremony Address by Mary Muia-Mukhwana, Chair, Steering Committee, Coalition for Health Research and Development (CHReaD) — Culture of Science Conference 2026, Emara Ole Sereni Hotel, Nairobi, Tuesday, 8 September 2026.
Heads of Institutions and Development Partners,
Researchers, Innovators and Scientists,
Members of the Media and Civil Society,
Fellow Advocates for a Better Africa,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Good morning, and to our visitors from other countries, welcome to Nairobi.
I am elated to be among such a distinguished audience this morning at the opening of the first-ever Culture of Science Conference, the 2026 edition. We gather under the theme “Shaping Africa’s Future through Science,” and we do so with a conviction that has been long in the making.
Science is not a distant discipline reserved for laboratories and academic journals. It is the fabric of how societies govern, how economies grow, and how communities thrive. This conference testifies to our collective conviction that Africa ought to treat science as a cultural, political, and economic force, not as a technical afterthought.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The Coalition for Health Research and Development, which I have the honour to chair, is a multi-sectoral alliance of more than 40 organisations committed to advancing health research and innovation across Kenya and Africa. Hosted by Amref Health Africa, we have long understood that the barriers to scientific progress are not only financial or technical. They are cultural.
They reside in the stories we tell about science, the trust we place in evidence, and the value we assign to African expertise. This understanding gave birth to the Culture of Science platform, and today that platform finds its fullest expression in this gathering.
Over the next three days, we shall engage with 17 sessions across four pillars that form the backbone of a thriving scientific society. We shall examine how to finance scientific ambition through innovative domestic investment and philanthropy. We shall explore how policy and regulation can enable rather than hinder progress.
We shall celebrate research and innovation, from genomics to artificial intelligence to local manufacturing. And we shall confront the most delicate challenge of all — that is, building public trust in an age when misinformation travels faster than truth.
This conference is not a talk shop. Its central output is the Culture of Science Action Agenda 2026 to 2028. This is a negotiated framework of commitments built from public consultation across six life domains. By the close of Day Three, we shall sign this agenda publicly, binding ourselves to measurable actions that will long outlive the applause of this opening ceremony.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Allow me to acknowledge the presence of our co-conveners, the Africa Health Research, Innovation and Development Alliance, and our principal partner Speak Up Africa. I also extend unreserved gratitude to the Government of Kenya for its support, and I salute every delegate who has travelled from across the continent to attend this conference. You are the makers of the future we desire and deserve.
The days ahead will demand honesty, courage, and collaboration. I urge each one of us to spend the three days with open minds and committed hearts. Africa’s future is being shaped, and we are privileged to be in the forefront of that solemn exercise.
Thank you.