Science and technology minister Ben Ngubane has reiterated the government`s commitment to developing SA`s science and technology sectors through strategically increased investment.
However, the minister says the country faces several challenges on this score - among them a limited investment in research and development, and access to information and communications technology (ICT).
The minister said at a media briefing in Parliament today that his department was committed to strategically increased investment in science and technology to generate "the next generation of inventors and innovators who will bring new benefits and quality of life to our people. We invite the broader public and the scientific community at large to continuously engage us in the effective implementation of the National Research and Development Strategy."
Ngubane outlined key challenges in the way of achieving the full potential of science and technology development. These included a lack of investment in R&D. "National investment in R&D as a percentage of GDP is a low 0.69% and substantially below the international norm of 1% and Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) norm of 2.33% (2001)."
In addition, he said SA has 7.5 researchers per 10 000 of labour force, as compared to Australia (48.5), Korea (27.5) and Canada (47). "Countries with high national R&D capacity are characterised by a high degree of innovation; and SA is under-performing with regards to the amount of proceeds received from royalties and licence fees."
Technology diffusion was another stumbling block, and Ngubane pointed out: "In 2001, only 42% of households in SA had access to telephone landlines or cellphones (Census 2001). Adoption of new technologies continues to be slow and only 4.1% of the total population were Internet users in 2002."
Driving development
Ngubane said the department had also identified certain key drivers, among them targeted implementation of the National Research and Development Strategy (NRDS); investment in infrastructure, technology advancement, innovation and industrial expansion in partnership with the private sector and other government departments. His department also highlighted a need for joint planning with the Department of Education to address the skills shortage in science and technology.
Ngubane said acceptance of the NRDS had led to an increase in government science and technology spending in various areas. In the ICT sphere, this spend focused on the development of open source software. "Our department, together with Department of Communications, Department of Education and Department of Labour, is also currently in the process of establishing the Advanced Institute for Information and Communications Technology (AIICT). The major objective of this AIICT is to facilitate national economic and social development through human resource development and needs-based research leading to innovative products and services based on ICT. The CSIR is earmarked to play a leading role in the AIICT."
He added that there had been a number of positive developments in international relations in recent months, among them interaction with the European Union and the ACP countries to secure new financing for science and technology programmes, and bilateral agreements with Iran and Japan.
"We will report the full outcome of these processes during the course of the year, but the very practical and targeted nature of science and technology international relations is critical in terms of strategically positioning the science and technology system to impact on quality of life and economic growth," he said.
Developing a governance framework
Ngubane also pointed out that the department has a dedicated branch, Government Science & Technology System, which is responsible for the funding and governance of the science and technology system in government. "It also attempts to proactively stay abreast of latest developments in governance, and two of its officials recently attended the Annual International Corporate Governance Network Conference in Amsterdam, where they, together with Mervyn King, were the only South Africans present.
"The lessons learnt are captured in the new Governance Framework, which is currently being developed in this branch," Ngubane said. "The main purpose of this framework will be to strengthen governance and address the fragmented SET system.
"To establish a more effective innovation system, we are also in the process of developing legislation to harmonise the governance of research councils and agencies, and government science and technology institutions. The requirement for this legislation resulted from a lack of a single coherent picture of government spending on science and technology."
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