A multidisciplinary research infrastructure, such as a synchrotron light source or free-electron laser, or more generally, an Advanced Light Source (AdLS), is a super multi-dimensional, analytical microscope. It benefits numerous scientific disciplines, manufacturing industries, and technology businesses. There are approximately 55 AdLSs worldwide, mostly of a genre known as Generation III (Gen III). Many of these now have planned upgrades to Gen IV, which has a Figure of Merit improvement beyond Gen III of some ten thousand in their scientific power. So far, Africa does not yet have any such instrument. What are then the main reasons that it is vital and imperative for Africa to join this sector of the global science endeavour with its own AdLS?