Beyond the fish: why empowerment matters more than aid

By Dr Zoleka Filander

One of the greatest challenges in scientific capacity development is not delivering programmes but measuring their long-term impact. Annual reports rightly celebrate the number of workshops delivered, early-career researchers trained, countries represented and certificates awarded. These metrics demonstrate that programmes reached their intended audiences and achieved their planned activities. However, they reveal little about whether those investments ultimately produce sustained scientific leadership.

This is not to diminish the value of training workshops, research cruises, exchange programmes or mentoring initiatives. These remain essential, particularly where opportunities are limited. The challenge is that participation is often treated as evidence of capacity development, when it is only the beginning of a much longer journey. Exposure creates opportunity; capacity development creates leaders.

Unlike infrastructure projects, investments in people rarely produce immediate, measurable returns. Human capacity develops gradually, often beyond the lifespan of funded projects. Early gains may be reflected only in increased confidence, stronger professional networks or improved technical skills; important outcomes that are difficult to quantify and therefore seldom feature prominently in programme evaluations.

The International Indian Ocean Expedition-2 (IIOE-2), undertaken in 2017 onboard the South African-flagged vessel – the R/V SA Agulhas II, provides a compelling illustration of this distinction. Established as a multinational scientific programme to advance understanding of the Indian Ocean while strengthening regional scientific capacity, the South African-led IIOE-2 invested in early-career researchers from Mozambique, Tanzania, Kenya, Egypt, and Nigeria.

One such participant joined an IIOE-2 expedition as an early-career trainee, benefiting from what was, at the time, a relatively modest investment: a berth on a research vessel, mentorship from senior scientists and exposure to multinational oceanographic research.

 A decade later, that same individual returned to sea in her own region as co-cruise leader, responsible for coordinating an international research expedition. This is more than an inspiring career milestone. It demonstrates what successful capacity development looks like. The achievement lies not only in personal advancement but in the transition from trainee to mentor, from participant to leader, and from beneficiary to someone creating opportunities for others. The investment had come full circle.

This multiplier effect is perhaps the most overlooked outcome of capacity development. Programmes frequently assess their direct beneficiaries while overlooking the generations of scientists those beneficiaries later train, mentor and inspire. As the global scientific community increasingly embraces equitable partnerships, co-design and locally led research, our understanding of capacity development should evolve accordingly.

Participants should not be viewed as passive recipients of training, but as future leaders whose greatest contributions may emerge years after a project has ended.

Supporting one early-career scientist is therefore more than an investment in an individual; it is an investment in the future of ocean science. Some of the most valuable returns may only become visible long after project funding has concluded. This is not a weakness of capacity development; it is its greatest strength.

The most meaningful investments in people have always require patience. In other words, a tree planted today does not provide shade tomorrow. Likewise, an emerging researcher boarding a research vessel for the first time may not immediately transform ocean science. Given mentorship, opportunity and sustained support, however, that same individual may one day lead international expeditions, shape marine policy and inspire the next generation of scientists.

Perhaps the most important question is not how many people attended a workshop or completed a training course, but how many of today’s trainees become tomorrow’s scientific leaders.

Because exposure opens the door. Capacity development ensures someone eventually holds the key, and then opens that same door for those who follow.

*Filander is an Offshore Benthic Ecologist at the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment

 

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