Prof. Francis Momade, the foundation Provost of the KNUST College of Engineering, participated as one of the proponents in the inauguration of the AMIRA Pan African Decarbonization Institute on the 7th of February, 2023, in South Africa.
The Pan African Decarbonization Institute (PADI) seeks to unlock Africa’s Talent to harness the decarbonization opportunity. The Institute’s vision is to be a self-sustaining pipeline of Pan-African research, operational and technical leadership, talent, and decarbonization skills from resource management to product development and delivery.
The Pan African Decarbonization Institute is a consortium of partners from the University of Cape Town, Reminex Research and Volarization Center, KNUST College of Engineering (CoE), University of Mines and Technology (UMaT), African Centre of Excellence for Batteries (ACEB) in collaboration with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Zambian Universities with researchers supported by their respective governments.
Each Partner has a focus area but will collaborate with other institutions. The KNUST College of Engineering will collaborate in developing technologies for extracting various Energy Minerals and Metals, Data Science, Pilot Testing, Biomass conversion, grid-connected renewable energy systems, Solar PV, and Hydrogeology.
The KNUST College of Engineering is home to various relevant centers spanning the energy, environment, and water sectors. The Brew Hammond Energy Center (TBHEC) has collaborated with many international institutions. It brings together researchers from the College of Engineering and various departments at KNUST to participate in energy-related projects. The KNUST Engineering Education Project (KEEP), funded by the World Bank, brings graduate students across the subregion to research in energy and digital-thematic areas. On the other hand, the Regional Water Environment and Sanitation Centre (RWESCK) is a center of excellence for research and development in water and sanitation thematic areas. These centers at the KNUST College of Engineering bring expertise from the various departments to work together in many research areas.
PADI will lead Africa to participate meaningfully in the decarbonization value chain. The Institute will also contribute to industry-focused research to develop the whole value chain, transform energy systems and sectors globally, and ensure the economic return is maximized for Africa’s new energy resources.
PADI will connect world-class research capability with the needs of the African industry to build knowledge and develop processes and decarbonization applications using Africa’s resources. It will enable research that tackles industry challenges and connect researchers and other sponsors to maximize the benefits and optimize critical minerals extraction and value.
