Research and analysis

South Africa science and innovation: opportunities knock - July 2014

Published 16 July 2014

0.1 Detail

FCO Chief Scientific Advisor Robin Grimes visited South Africa from 6-10 July to assess the potential for thickening the UK/South Africa science and innovation partnership. He met key Government Departments and research bodies, including Vice Chancellors of all top universities. Business activities centred on the nuclear industry. Grimes gave three lectures: at the University of Johannesburg, the Cape Town Science Centre and to the British Business Chamber, as well as a range of print and radio interviews.

Newton Fund

Grimes had two meetings with the Department of Science and Technology (DST), including with Minister Naledi Pandor. Grimes handed over a signed Declaration of Intent underpinning our bilateral Newton Programme and agreed the rollout of Newton activities within the month, ahead of a formal MoU signing in September. DST underlined their commitment to Newton co-ownership and co-responsibility.

Prosperity Through Science

Minister Pandor’s mandate from President Zuma is to “make science relevant to society”. Our priorities fit well with that – we will take forward joint activities to increase the public’s appreciation of science as an enabler for prosperity, and to up the rate of research absorption into innovative products and services with direct public benefit. The SKA project will be a major challenge and opportunity, including for the UK as a key partner. Grimes strongly promoted, with both Minister Pandor and SKA SA Director Fanaroff, the UK’s ambition to continue hosting the SKA’s international HQ in Manchester, flagging the recent UK offer of £100m.

The Nuclear Option

South Africa’s nuclear energy future was a major focus, including with government, state-owned power provider Eskom and the Nuclear Energy Corporation, business and the Nuclear Industry Association. While the build timeline and funding remains to be finalised, a fleet of six reactors covering the full fuel cycle seems most likely.

UK opportunities lie in niche parts of the supply chain, and the interest to work with us was clear, particularly from industry and likely implementers. We agreed to rekindle linkages between our Nuclear Industry Associations and regulators, examine funding possibilities ahead of and during the visit of the Lord Mayor in September, take forward co-operation around nuclear waste management, share experiences with DECC of dealing with key vendors and up research collaboration around the nuclear fuel cycle (including reprocessing) and the use of isotopes in health.

Higher Education and Research

A common thread was the brake on South African scientific and industrial development due to human capacity constraints. The government partially aims to address this through trebling the target for PhD’s awarded, which meshes with the ‘People’ strand of our Newton Programme (including Joint Fellowships and PhD’s). There was a thirst for senior UK academics and their post doc students to spend time in South Africa, developing long term intergenerational research partnerships including co-supervision of South African PhDs.

These areas provide wider opportunities for the UK’s higher education offering. We will host an Education Forum in September, including options to increase sandwich courses with elements in the UK and/or in industry, skills for employability, co-supervision of students and using the expanding Chevening scheme to attract more South African applications from scientists and engineers. We will also look at schemes to attract early career researchers to South Africa; up-skill lecturers; joint appointments of established researchers and opportunities for sabbaticals. The National Research Foundation agreed to co-run an event fusing Chevening and science alumni with industry.

0.2 Comment

Grimes found a maturing system of innovation, with ambitious new government targets to double research spending over the next five years. Our Newton Fund gives us the firepower to be a strategic partner to help deliver increasingly aligned objectives, and position us as partner of choice in other important non-Newton areas. Higher education more broadly is one such area, which we will take forward through the Education Forum.

Grimes’ visit also opened up a dialogue on how governments use scientific research and collaboration to underpin policy making with robust evidence, and how to increase public awareness of how science impacts society and development. There is a keen interest here to pursue that debate.

0.3 Disclaimer

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