The Pan-African Institute for Development (IPD) is built on fundamental values such as:

• Community engagement,
• Social justice,
• African solidarity,
• Gender approach and inclusion,
• The promotion of indigenous knowledge.

Its strategic focus areas include:

• Integrated local development,
• Education for development,
• Participatory governance,
• Natural resource management and climate resilience,
• The promotion of peace and social cohesion.

As a Pan-African institution, IPD operates through a decentralized regional network, with multiple regional centers (CRAD, CRAP, CRA, etc.) and a General Secretariat based in Yaoundé, Cameroon, which ensures overall coordination.

IPD collaborates with:

• International organizations such as the UN, UNESCO, UNICEF, the African Union, etc.;
• African and European research institutions and universities;
• International NGOs and civil society networks.

IPD does not advocate for imported or imposed models of development. It promotes development that is conceived by Africans, with communities, and in service of concrete needs: food security, youth training, women’s empowerment, poverty alleviation, effective local governance…

Its motto could be summarized as:
« Train to transform, educate to liberate, act to develop. »

The Pan-African Institute for Development and UNESCO: A Synergy Focused on Science and Sustainable Development
The world stands at a crossroads—between structural challenges and immense opportunities. In this context, the Pan-African Institute for Development (IPD) embodies a bold vision resolutely oriented toward the future. Created to meet specific needs in training, applied research, and endogenous development on the continent, IPD places people, knowledge, and innovation at the heart of its mission.

Like UNESCO, IPD champions a development approach grounded in science, education, and culture. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) strongly asserts that science is an essential lever for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It enables the fight against poverty, the improvement of public health, the responsible management of natural resources, and the strengthening of countries’ technological and institutional capacities.

IPD, as an African actor deeply rooted in local realities, embraces this global perspective. It complements it with a contextual understanding of Africa’s specific challenges: desertification, food insecurity, low industrialization, unequal access to education and scientific knowledge. In response, the Institute develops interdisciplinary training programs, creates applied research centers, and promotes the co-construction of knowledge with local communities, aligned with the UNESCO concept of “science for society.”

Furthermore, in a continent where access to scientific education remains unequal, IPD implements initiatives for outreach, technical training, and capacity building—particularly for youth and women. Because science without inclusion is science deprived, incapable of delivering the desired social transformations. In this regard as well, IPD joins UNESCO in advocating for science that is equitable, inclusive, and ethical.

This is not only about producing knowledge—it is about making science a tool for social transformation and African sovereignty. The continent is rich in indigenous knowledge, agricultural practices, traditional medicine, and solidarity systems that can engage in dialogue with modern science. IPD promotes a hybrid approach, balancing scientific rigor with cultural grounding, true to the spirit of decolonizing knowledge, also championed by UNESCO.

In this light, cooperation between IPD and UNESCO programs represents a vital strategic axis. It opens the door to:

• Co-developing African scientific policies aligned with real community needs;
• Establishing centers of excellence in research;
• Integrating African countries into major global scientific initiatives (climate, AI, health, green energy);
• And recognizing Africa as a major intellectual actor.

In short, the partnership between IPD and UNESCO goes far beyond institutional alignment: it is a call for epistemological renewal, for an Africa that thinks, creates, and transforms the world based on its own realities. By placing science at the service of people, the Pan-African Institute for Development charts an ambitious course—toward inclusive, sustainable, and sovereign development.