In 2011, Government approved the National Research Priorities. The Research Council of Zimbabwe (RCZ) played a major role in developing these priorities. The national research priorities are a set of theme areas towards which financial and other resources will be deliberately directed. This document provides a concise summary of the National Research Priorities to inform the various research stakeholders.
Selecting national research priorities began with a preliminary desk research of the processes carried out by other countries. Ideally, the study of other countries should have involved visits to the respective countries. However, due to limited financial resources, this was not done. Following the desk study and an in-depth analysis of the national policies and plans, a set of proposed priorities was developed. A two-day stakeholders’ workshop was then held where Participants from academia, Government research institutions, industrialists and parastatals worked out the priorities using internationally recognised tools. Four (4) priority theme areas and twenty-two (22) associated goals were identified.