Marking its 80th anniversary, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) is reaffirming its role as South Africa’s innovation engine. From data analytics and artificial intelligence (AI) to advanced manufacturing and sustainable technologies, the organisation is intensifying its focus on science that delivers measurable national impact.
At a recent roundtable, Dr Thulani Dlamini, CEO of the CSIR, said the organisation continues to play a critical role in tackling the country’s developmental challenges, including poverty, unemployment and inequality. “We are committed to ensuring that the work we do responds to the imperatives our government is facing,” he said. “We will continue to invest in cutting-edge technologies… which are essential for us and for our country to build capabilities that are not only responding to the problem that we are facing today, but looking at opportunities that can position the CSIR in South Africa for the future.”
Over the past financial year, the CSIR achieved 94% of its key performance indicators, increased projects supporting government and state-owned entities by 22% and recorded 11% revenue growth in a difficult economic climate. He pointed to significant progress in commercialising research, expanding international partnerships and supporting small and medium enterprises through technology transfer.
The CSIR has also worked to diversify its income streams, growing its international collaborations by 75% and its private-sector income by 40% over the past six years. Dlamini said this global engagement is vital for maintaining competitiveness and ensuring that South African science remains part of the worldwide innovation ecosystem.
Among the CSIR’s recent achievements is the establishment of the Transport Safety Laboratory, a first-of-its-kind facility in Africa that studies how technology, infrastructure and human behaviour interact on South Africa’s roads. By combining data science with behavioural analysis, the laboratory supports evidence-based policy decisions and aims to reduce South Africa’s high accident rate. “It’s a facility that will help us develop a better understanding of what we need to do as a country to improve safety on our roads,” says Dlamini.
Another milestone is the FuturePharma facility, which enables local production of small-molecule and biologically active pharmaceutical ingredients. The initiative strengthens South Africa’s health security by reducing reliance on imported vaccines and medicines, while also developing manufacturing expertise and creating opportunities for collaboration across the local pharmaceutical value chain. “There's a lot of discussion now around health security and health sovereignty that we need to invest in as a continent,” adds Dlamini. “This new FuturePharma facility will help position South Africa very strongly in terms of our ability to produce our own facilities.”
With a scientific workforce of more than 1 600 people, 73% of whom are black and 40% women, the CSIR continues to prioritise transformation and skills development. It also achieved another clean audit in the last financial year, reinforcing its commitment to integrity, collaboration and good governance.
As the organisation enters its ninth decade, Dlamini said the CSIR’s purpose remains clear: “We foster industrial development, we foster the creation of a capable state and, of course, contribute towards improving the social economic outcomes of the people of South Africa,” he concluded. “Everything that we do in the CSIR is not for ourselves, but for our partners, be it in government, be it industry, be it society in general.”
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