Department Science & Technology Budget Vote & Strategic Plan 2006-7 & 2007-8: briefing

EDUCATION AND RECREATION SELECT COMMITTEE
13 September 2006
DEPARTMENT SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY BUDGET VOTE AND STRATEGIC PLAN 2006-7 AND 2007-8: BRIEFING BY THE DEPARTMENT OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Chairperson: Mr. B J Tolo (ANC Northern Cape)

Documents handed out:
Department of Science and Technology Budget and Strategic Plan 2006/07-2008/09

SUMMARY
The Committee was briefed by the Department of Science and Technology on the strategic goals and plans of the Department, as well as its budget and programmes for 2006-7 and 2007-8. Strategic goals included ensuring the national innovation system addressed growth and development goals, developing a highly representative and competent group of scientists, administering funding, and responding to global and continental challenges. The Department would continue to implement the National Research and Development Strategy, develop human resources, new areas of knowledge and technology and intellectual property.. It would focus on increasing the numbers of younger researchers, establishing research chairs, encouraging engineering and technical skills, establishing new innovation and technology institutions, the science and technology expenditure plan, social impact programmes and implementation of new strategic management models. Some selected initiatives were outlined and briefly explained. Dr Mjwara tabled the projected expenditure for the next MTEF cycle up to 2009, comparing it to expenditure in the 2005/6 financial years. He projected that total expenditure would increase by 20% in 2006/7, rising to 26% in 2008/9. The research and development infrastructure would be R1.2 billion over the cycle. The main increases were due to new R & D funding and new infrastructure funding. Transfer and subsidies accounted for 87% of funding.

Members asked questions on the monitoring of entities funded by the Department, its involvement with further education colleges, the number of research chairs, and its work with other Departments. The Department was asked to expand on its progress with traditional medicine and indigenous plants, livestock programmes, global warming research, space and technology programmes, biofuels and poverty alleviation programmes. Further questions were asked on the Department’s involvement with Science and Youth programmes, how it planned to address the exodus of skills and encourage learners to enter the science fields, learnership costs, the reasons for the fluctuation in increased expenditure, and the low allocation to science in the National budget. 

The Committee approved the Minutes of its previous meeting.

MINUTES
Budget and Strategic plan of the Department of Science and Technology 2006-7:
Dr Philemon Mjwara (Director General, Department of Science and Technology (DST)) briefed the Committee on the strategic goals and plans of the Department, as well as its budget and programmes for 2006-7 and 2007-8. He began by defining various concepts for the Committee and tabling the research and development strategy framework. Strategic goals included ensuring the national innovation system addressed growth and development goals, developing a highly representative and competent group of scientists, administering an optimum set of funding instruments, and responding to global and continental challenges. The focus would include implementation of the National Research and Development Strategy, development of human resources, new areas of knowledge and technology and intellectual property derived from public funded research. Focus areas included increasing the numbers of younger researchers, establishing research chairs, encouraging engineering and technical skills to underpin economic growth, establishing new innovation and technology institutions, the science and technology expenditure plan, social impact programmes and implementation of new strategic management models. Some selected initiatives were outlined and briefly explained. These included promoting South Africa as a preferred destination for global science facilities, establishment of the Academy of Engineering, increasing capacity in technology intelligence, focusing on sustainable livelihoods through aquaculture, essential oils and indigenous medicinal plants, dealing with health innovation in human settlements, and increasing service delivery through rural connectivity.

Dr Mjwara tabled the projected expenditure for the next cycle up to 2009, comparing it to expenditure in the 2005/6 financial years. He projected that total expenditure would increase to R2.6 billion in 2006/7 (20% increase) and would increase by 19% in the next year and by 26% in 2008/9. The research and development infrastructure would be R1.2 billion over the cycle, and would include investment in nanotechnology, hydrogen economy, advanced manufacturing and IT and communication technology. Increased activity would also show in space and astronomy, the Centre for High Performance Computing, and the South African Research Network. Thus the main increases were due to new R & D funding and new infrastructure funding.

Dr Mjwara tabled a break down of the budget into the various areas and noted that transfer and subsidies accounted for 87% of funding. He tabled a list of the public entities funded by DST and the major programmes undertaken.

Discussion
Ms F Mazibuko (ANC, Gauteng) thanked the Department for an informative presentation and input. She asked what kind of benchmark was used to measure the work of the entities that were funded by DST and if there was a monitoring process in place. She also asked what role DST played in the monitoring of Further Education Training centres in terms of funding and monitoring of the equipment.
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Dr Mjwara replied that DST was involved with the Joint Initiative For Priority Skills Acquisition (JIPSA) to increase and provide skills in the Science and Technology sector, and DST did monitor the Further Education and Training Centres to ensure they had adequate material and equipment. DST also monitored the progress and work of the public institutions that it was funding. All institutions had to submit annual reports and strategic benchmarks, which would be set up at the beginning of the year and then be used to evaluate their performance. There were five set key indicators to measure the performance of these entities.

Ms N Madlala-Magubane (ANC, Gauteng) asked how many research chairs had been set up and where they were situated.

Dr Mjwara noted that there were 20 research chairs already been set up. There was a target of 210 chairs. He did not have with him the details of the universities at which the research chairs had been established.

Ms Mazibuko commented that some of the DST work overlapped with the work of other departments and asked whether the departments worked together in areas of overlap.

Dr Mjwara replied that the Cabinet had approved the new governance framework for the Science and Technology system that required DST to work together with other entities and other departments where necessary, and DST was following this system.

Ms Mazibuko asked about indigenous healing plants known in African culture, and what role DST played in researching indigenous plants and making them available to the public.

Ms N Madlala-Magubane commented that the Department of Health, in making a presentation on the previous day, had highlighted that they worked with DST on the research of indigenous methods and intended to regulate some of the medicines used regularly by the public. She asked for an indication of what each Department was doing.

Dr Mjwara reported that a project had been designed to acquire knowledge from traditional healers and various communities on indigenous methods of healing and use of traditional plants. This information was gathered, compiled and held at the Centre for Scientific and Industrial Research, and included the names of plants, how they should be prepared and safe quantities and indicators for use. Furthermore laboratories had been set up to research and investigate plants with medicinal value, and to extract the exact ingredient of medicinal value with the intention of regulating use in a formal manner.

Ms Mazibuko requested more information on the Academy of Engineers, who attended it, where it was situated and the types of courses offered. 

Dr Mjwara replied that the legislation setting up the Academy of Engineers had not yet been passed in parliament so that no academy had been set up. Its location was yet to be determined.

Mr M Sulliman (ANC, Northern Cape) stated that at one point DST had invested in the improvement of livestock, but he noted that this was no longer mentioned in the list of activities and enquired as to the current position.
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Dr Mjwara stated that he had no information on what happened to the schemes and why they had been discontinued.

Mr Sulliman was happy with the fact that the department was involved in Aquaculture, but asked to what extent they were involved in global warming. He noted that bio-fuels formed part of the Accelerated Shared Growth Initiative of South Africa (ASGISA) and asked DST to  -elaborate how far this process was.

Dr Mjwara stated that DST had a project researching global warming since it had become a major environmental problem, and this would be funded jointly with DST, and the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism. Research was still ongoing on bio fuels and the regulation process to monitor the plants that had been set aside for bio fuels through genetically modified organism (GMO) processes. Furthermore, DST was funding a project that was aimed at increasing the awareness of biotechnology and GMOs, at regulating use of GMOs and informing the public about genetically modified foods on sale. In addition DST also funded research being conducted on genetically modified foods by the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and the National Research Foundation (NRF).

Ms Madlala-Magubane questioned why the funding for the Aids Vaccine Initiative had declined, and what activities DST was funding in the Science and Youth Programme.

Dr Mjwara responded that R20 million was spent on the Youth and Science projects, R10 million was spent on internships and R5 million was spent on learnerships.

Ms Madlala-Magubane asked about the 8% increase in the expenditure for the department. She noted that the usual increase for departments was around 4% to cover the increase in labour costs.

Dr Mjwara replied that the 8% increase in the administration expenses included the cost of the new building in which DST operated. This represented about half of the increase, and the other half represented the staff costs for the 230 employees at the department.

Ms J Masilo (ANC, North West) asked the department to elaborate more on the space and technology programme, and whether the department had any relationship with Sasol.

Dr Mjwara stated that in terms of the space and technology programme, a satellite was being built to monitor land and weather forecasts far into the future, which would give due warning and save lives in the case of natural disasters.

A representative from DST acknowledged that the rightful relationship that DST should have with Sasol was not yet in place, but that a meeting between the Department and Sasol, aimed at strengthening the relationship, would be held in October.

Ms Masilo asked who regulated the internships and the learnerships, how long they ran, and how much the candidates were paid per month.

Dr Mjwara replied that internships were part of the skills training projects that were set up at DST. Last year there were 49 interns and a budget of R3 million, but in 2006 this had grown to 166 interns and a budget of R8 million budget. The 2007 target was 300 interns, and the budget R25 million. The interns were paid R4 000 per month. Learners were also paid R4000 pre month and there was a budget for learnerships of R5 million at present.

Ms Masilo asked who monitored the animal hospital in Oudsthoorn, which was known for exorbitant fees.

Dr Mjwara declared that DST had no relationship or ties with this animal hospital, which fell under the control of the Department of Health.

Ms J Vilakazi (IFP, Kwazulu-Natal) expressed her concerns that certain kinds of medicine and plants were imported from other countries although South Africa had them available itself. For example, the aloe plant and the umbangalala plant were readily available in Natal but they hadnever been explored by South African scientists so that South Africa could produce its own medicine where possible.

Dr Mjwara replied that DST was funding an entity named NIGSO, which was in charge of the research on plants that could have medicinal value, such as the aloe plant and others, but there was no information available right now as to why these plants had not been researched before.

Ms Mazibuko questioned why the percentage increase mentioned in the report was fluctuating, and asked whether it was not in the interests of DST to maintain the increase at a steady rate.

Dr Mjwara explained that inflation played a large part in the fluctuating of expenditure, and the cost of the new building was R130 million. If one discounted the 4,5% inflation increase, then the real growth rate was about 12%.

The Chairperson asked what DST was doing to address the number of skilled South Africans living abroad, and whether any incentives were planned to encourage them to bring back their skills to South Africa. He also asked what efforts DST was making to encourage young scholars into science.

Dr Mjwara replied that the NRF was busy compiling a database of all the skilled people who were living abroad, and would subsequently investigate and plan how to try to bring them back. DST funded some initiatives in communities that were aimed at attracting young learners into science. There were already some centres, such as the MTN Science Centre in Cape Town, which had been opened as part of this initiative. In terms of skills training, DST had recently visited Brazil to engage in talks with its officials about possible skills training and exchange between the two countries. Similar initiatives were planned with India.
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The Chairperson expressed his concerns that science and technology only accounted for 8% of the total GDP. Even though it was targeted to increase, he still felt that the increase of 1% was too low

Dr Mjwara responded that the 1% target of growth in GDP was projected until 2008 and should increase thereafter. There were a number of different factors which he had not elaborated upon in this presentation.

The Chairperson asked about the poverty alleviation projects that used to be in place at DST, but which had not been mentioned in the funding figures.

Dr Mjwara explained that each of the public entities being funded included poverty alleviation projects in them, so the DST was still engaged in these projects, even though no specific separate budget was attached to them.

Committee business
The Committee adopted the Minutes of the previous meeting.

The meeting was adjourned.