WASHINGTON — When John F. Kennedy came to the University of Michigan to campaign for president in the fall of 1960, Africa was plagued with trade and governance challenges far more daunting than those it faces today. The young senator recognized that African nations — like other countries emerging from colonialism — were preoccupied with developing basic literacy and manpower. And so he urged students to go abroad and help them. The spirited response resulted in one of America’s greatest gifts to the world: the Peace Corps.

Next week, President Obama is convening a U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit in Washington; the stated objective is “Investing in the Next Generation.” But the summit’s focus on private sector deals won’t necessarily further that goal. There is a way to make a lasting and low-cost investment in Africa’s next generation: Mr. Obama must bring education — and science and technology in particular — to the forefront of the debate about African development.

Africa is experiencing an economic upswing, but its growth is predominantly based on extracting natural resources rather than increasing industrial productivity. African economies are still dominated by low-level processing of natural resources and the production of simple consumer goods for local consumption. Most of these nations are far from making any internationally significant technological breakthroughs.

What ultimately distinguishes — and continues to handicap — Africa is its lack of mastery of modern science and technology. Without advanced competency in these areas, nations cannot harness the full power of scientific research and technological tools to solve the many health, energy and development challenges confronting them.