What do scientists, funding managers and policy experts want to hear South African president Cyril Ramaphosa say about science and innovation when he addresses the nation tonight?
South Africa’s president Cyril Ramaphosa delivers his state of the nation address in Cape Town on the evening of 7 February.
In the days before the speech, Research Africa asked a cross-section of stakeholders from South Africa’s science and technology sector what they would like to hear the president say this evening.
This is what they said.
The managers
Molapho Qhobela, National Research Foundation chief executive officer
This year the country commemorates 25 years of freedom, and the National Research Foundation commemorates 20 years since its establishment. Therefore, the president may wish to reflect on the the relationship between science and society, with particular regard to the connection between national policy for science and science for policy. He could mention investments in human capacity, with a focus on expanding and transforming science. Our government has a policy to support financially needy students, but there is no additional provision made for the NRF to extend its support to these students if they wish to pursue postgraduate education and training.
Glenda Kruss, deputy executive director of the Human Sciences Research Council’s Centre for Science, Technology and Innovation Indicators programme
What I would really like to hear about is how there is a stronger commitment to orient science, technology and innovation, and the national system of innovation, to promote transformation and structural change in support of achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. How is our R&D and innovation oriented to ensure wider access to water, sanitation and energy, for example? Or to enhance the livelihoods of informal enterprises in townships and rural areas, and not only to grow the productivity and profits of large and transnational firms? Or, when we talk about the new technologies of the fourth industrial revolution, how will we direct their potential to respond to our most pressing developmental challenges?
The scientists
Nox Makunga, professor of biotechnology at Stellenbosch University
Lately it feels like we are always on a catch up to the rest of the world in South Africa when it comes to science. The idea of increasing innovation and being an influencer in the fourth industrial revolution is not possible without a concerted effort to cement a good foundation when it comes to maths and science from the grassroots up. Otherwise investment at the higher levels, like training more women or black scientists, is just a dream. To be globally competitive much larger budgets in the sciences are needed. Even if there have been increments in 2018, it is just not enough. There is substantial funding that is allocated towards postgraduate bursaries but we need bigger investments as researchers for running the cost of projects.
Kevin Govender, director of the International Astronomical Union’s Office of Astronomy for Development
The main thing that scientists and the science community in general would hope to hear from the president is a commitment to increasing the budget of the Department of Science and Technology, and thus increasing the support for scientific research. Year after year the DST, along with the science community, receive praise and appreciation across party lines for their work, but it seldom translates into raising the budget allocations to the desired budgetary goals.
Amanda Weltman, chair in physical cosmology at the University of Cape Town
I would very much like to see a commitment to invest at least 1 per cent of GDP in research and development and a strong commitment to support and fund basic sciences and fundamental research. I would also like to see mention of efforts to make the free exchange of people and ideas possible, specifically making it easier to travel within Africa and for people to come to South Africa.
The policy scholars
John Mugabe, professor of science and innovation policy at the University of Pretoria
There are two broad issues that South Africa’s executive and political leadership should address. First, reconfiguring the institutional landscape in order to mainstream science, technology and innovation across departments and sectors. There is a need to move the locus of STI policy from the Department of Science and Technology to the whole government in order to transit to effective policy implementation. The desirable and feasible approach is to relocate STI policy administration to the presidency and vest STI policy implementation into sectoral departments: water, health, trade and industry. This means dismantling DST and moving its sections into various departments.
Second, they need to design a strategic approach to funding STI in general and R&D in particular. South Africa has disjointed and poorly coordinated approaches to funding public R&D and innovation. Limited, and increasingly scarce, financial resources are being thinly spread across many incoherent national priorities and disciplinary orientations. It is time for government to adopt a more mission-oriented funding strategy.
Michael Kahn, professor extraordinaire at Stellenbosch University
I want to hear substance. Less wha-wha about the fourth industrial revolution. Open the employment gates. Perhaps really go for free postgraduate education coupled with a graduate tax. Indeed, spread that tax to all employed postgraduates working in the metros. Use the tax to fix education. See, one can out-rad the EFF…
Do you agree or disagree with our panel of opinion-makers? Make your voice known by commenting below, or engage the community on Twitter @ResearchAfrica.