The Ghana National Commission for UNESCO and   the Planning Committee of IYL, 2015 has postponed the Africa Regional Conference and Exhibition on ‘Harnessing Light and Light-based Technologies for Africa’s Development’ to 14th – 16th September, 2015 at the Accra International Conference Centre, Ghana.

The Conference and Exhibition which was originally scheduled for 26th – 28th May 2015 had to be rescheduled mainly due to the many requests received from institutions, agencies and the general public to allow adequate time to prepare and showcase in the Exhibition the extent to which Ghana has come in the area of Light and Light-Based Technologies.

The Conference and Exhibition aims among others at creating  awareness on the potential of Light and Light-Based Technologies in solving many of the challenges facing the African Continent in the field of Education, Energy, Communications, Agriculture and Health.

The Event will also promote interaction and dialogue among academics, industries and professionals in using optics and photonics concepts in tapping developmental strategies for communities with the view to enabling policy-makers appreciate the relevance for the support of science for economic advancement. It would further attract young minds and innovators to come out with new ideas and inventions in the application of Light-Based Technologies for the benefit of the Continent.

Ghana’s involvement in the IYL 2015 has already found four identified priority areas that are paramount for the sustainable development of the country.

These are:

1. The upgrading of the Laser and Fiber Optics Centre at the University of Cape Coast into a full-fledged Institute for capacity - building in Fibre Optics Technology;

2. The establishment in the country of a sub -regional Laser Medical Application Laboratory (LMAL) to train medical practitioners to make use of the relevant laser  technologies in the field of urology, ophthalmology, dentistry and general surgery.

3. The establishment of a Solar Technology Research Centre to enhance the study and promotion of solar science and the use of alternative energy as well as,

4. The establishment of a Museum of Light and Light-based Technologies as part of solutions to the post-2015 United Nations development agenda.

The Ghana National Commission for UNESCO together with the Planning Committee of IYL 2015 seek partnership and collaboration of Corporate Ghana for the realization of the above outcomes