Council for Scientific and Industrial Research 2005/06 Annual Report: briefing
Science, Technology and Innovation
19 September 2006
Meeting Summary
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Meeting report
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE
19 September 2006
COUNCIL FOR SCIENTIFIC AND INDUSTRIAL RESEARCH 2005/06 ANNUAL REPORT: BRIEFING
Chairperson: Mr E N N Ngcobo (ANC)
Documents handed out:
Council
for Scientific and Industrial Research Annual Report 2005/2006
Council for
Scientific and Industrial Research Annual Report 2005/2006 Power Point
presentation
SUMMARY
The CSIR provided an overview of its accomplishments during the 2005/06 year
measured against its mandate. The Council presented its Annual Report including
various demographic statistics and financial developments. The Portfolio
Committee was called away for another meeting, cutting question time short.
Members asked questions about the loss of staff members, the perceived lack of
qualified black candidates, the problems involved with delivering science in
the real world and the lack of implementation of projects beyond the incubation
stage. The Committee was convinced that there were plenty of qualified black
candidates without jobs, rendering the excuse of a small pool for
transformation purposes inadequate.
MINUTES
The Chairperson said the meeting could only continue until 1200 as Members were
required at another meeting. He expressed regret and hoped that the Committee
would continue interacting with the Council for Scientific and Industrial
Research (CSIR) in order to deal with outstanding issues resulting from the
shortened meeting.
CSIR
presentation
Dr Sibusiso Sibisi (President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) began his
presentation with a DVD which showcased the CSIR’s highlights from 2005/06.
This included, under Directed Research, a project making candles with a
mosquito repellent plant extract, the development of super sorghum, laser
technology and anti-TB drugs using nanotechnology. Under Infrastucture, the
Council has created a heavy vehicle simulator and has investigated innovations
for optimal low income housing, curbing air pollution, satellite fire detection
and overcoming silicosis with the aim of eliminating the emergence of new cases
of the lung disease by 2013. This was in addition to creating wire rope testing
facilities. In safety and security, the CSIR has created technology for the SA
National Defence Force (SANDF), enhanced cyber-forensics and fire
investigations. For Computer Literacy, 100 country-wide Digital Doorways have
been created and wireless technology has been implemented through the Meraka
Institute. Large satellites, rocket launches and value addition to materials
have also featured in the CSIR’s programme during the year. It was very
important for the Council to disseminate information as well as creating it.
The goal was to empower people through knowledge in South Africa as well as in
the region.
The CSIR mandate originates in the Scientific Research Council Act, 1988. It is
very broad and the Council has ongoing discussions to clarify how the mandate
can be translated into strategy. The CSIR does not want to ‘miss the boat’ when
it comes to world developments like nanotechnology. Transformation in the CSIR
is multifaceted. They wanted to ensure a return to its core scientific purpose
as well as building and transforming human capital. They wanted to move away
from a commercial drive which has existed for the last decade and focus on
science. They could not rely on the existing knowledge base and must therefore
strengthen the science and technology base in the context of research and
development to fulfill the mandate.
The number of employees has dropped from 2379 in 2005 to 2088 in 2006. The loss
has been due to reconfiguration of the knowledge based services. Balance is
important in transformation so that key abilities are not lost. A qualification
profile shows that there are more MScs and PhDs among the older employees. This
was probably because the younger people were still working on these degrees,
but they must be encouraged to do so. The number of MScs and PhDs had increased
since 2002 from 7.3% to 9.4% of the total staff. The target, however, is 39%.
The demographic transformation has remained unchanged overall. The number of
black employees has increased from 44% to 47%, though black researchers have
decreased from 36% to 33% in the last year. The CSIR saw this as a problem and
was resolved to work harder on it. A possible explanation for the loss was that
people move on to more lucrative jobs in industry. The difficulty with
transformation was that desirable people were inevitably lost. Black Economic
Empowerment (BEE) drives in the country also attracted employees away from the
CSIR. There was a very small pool of black MSc and PhD graduates in the
country. They needed to invest in building human capacity through bursaries as
this was part of their mandate.
The CSIR had various work outputs including 89 research papers, 81 conference
papers, 685 CSIR reports and 4 patents over the last year. The major goal is in
line with the National Research and Development Strategy designed by the
Department of Science and Technology. The CSIR supports them in a number of
ways including making SA a world-class manufacturing nation through the
development of electronics and materials, developing supply chain management
though logistics, supporting biotechnology strategy and enhancing information
and a communication strategy through the Meraka Institute. They had programmes
for poverty alleviation; research and development outcomes for public good and
they supported New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) interactions.
With regards to financial sustainability, some income streams have been
discontinued but the CSIR showed mostly sound financial performance. There were
actuarial gains of R56.6 million on the post-retirement medical liability as
well as from the good performance of the Johannesburg Securities Exchange (JSE)
in the previous year. The Parliamentary grant has increased by 7.7% and the
contract income has remained fairly stable. The royalty income is only R2.73
million, which was very low. The sources of contract income were international,
public and private.
Discussion
The Chairperson thanked the CSIR and said he was sure that everyone present was
especially interested in the application of science to improve the lives of
South Africans; as this was what science’s purpose should be. From his recent
trip to Japan, he had three warnings. First, modern scientists think too much
about the terror that science can bring, but not about the errors in innocent
research that can create huge problems. Second, scientists must consider the
timing of their research and the impact of it on future generations. Third, “we
must not think we are alone; we must keep our environment clean in case
civilisations from other planets arrived.”
Mr S L Dithebe (ANC) asked what the deregistrations mentioned in the Annual
Report were due to; were these areas not performing? With regards to the post
retirement medical liability, he asked for clarity on who was included in this
and whether it was only members who joined prior to 1996. He stated that to
attend a conference, a paper must be produced. Was there a blue print for historically
disadvantaged persons to follow in this regard? He thanked the CSIR for staying
relevant especially regarding poverty alleviation.
Mr A R Ainslie (ANC) commented that when the Committee visited Wits and Rhodes
Universities last year there were queues of black MSc students who complained
of a lack of jobs in South Africa and who were making plans to find work
overseas. It was confusing that the CSIR thought the qualifications pool was
small. He asked what was being done at university level to hire these students.
The Committee would like a list of poverty alleviation projects so that they
can learn about them and roll them out. Many projects remained at the
“incubation” stage and are never rolled out on a large scale. What is done when
projects are successful? Was this CSIR’s responsibility and did they need a
single entity to co-ordinate projects between departments?
Prof I J Mohamed (ANC) asked whether the CSIR is involved in fighting the new
TB strain or if it only concerns the medical sector. He felt that even with the
increase, the government gives the CSIR too little funding and that the
government grant should exceed the contract income. With regards to the loss of
employees; are they lost forever or do they go to other industries?
Mr J P I Blanché
(DA) said that the world is becoming “flat” through globalisation and
industrial development. The CSIR must remain relevant. If the CSIR has designed
such a large heavy vehicle simulator, why are South African roads still so bad?
The same question was asked of air pollution. What legislative changes can be
made to help the CSIR better the infrastructure?
Ms B T Ngcobo (ANC) asked for information on community projects so that the
Committee could follow them up. Was the TB-nano project developed since the new
MDR (multi drug resistant) strain? Has the cause of the static demographic
percentage been identified and what is being done to remedy it?
Mr B J Mnyandu (ANC) asked for a comment on why there is such a difference
between the number of applications for patents and the number granted.
Mr Dithebe asked whether loans are still being granted to management.
The Chairperson noted that there seemed to be a vast pool of black MScs, and
that these candidates wondered what the point of promoting science is when
there are no jobs. Who is telling the truth? He personally distributed the CVs
of some very good PhD students to various institutions but there was no result.
Prof De la Rey (CSIR Board member) said that it could take up to 20 years to
develop a researcher. The CSIR should give direction to Parliament, perhaps at
a workshop.
Mr Chris Sturdy (Chief Financial Officer) said the medical liability was only
for people who joined before September 1996. They had had to enter an agreement
with members that were mutually beneficial.
Ms N Khungeka (Group Executive: R&D Outcomes and Strategic Human Capital
Development) said that they welcomed a workshop. The CSIR was not sitting on
the fence when it came to transformation; there was a biased recruitment drive in
place. Since the beginning of the financial year, the numbers had increased but
this had not been reflected in the presentation. The CVs of good black
candidates would certainly get the attention they deserved. The Department of
Science and Technology had created a dynamic environment and it was difficult
to imagine people in science sitting idle. Employees who leave often go to
government and industry where jobs are more lucrative. The number of women
employees was due to the small pool and was a complex issue that should be
included in the workshop. There was a hope that recent profiles published about
women in science would encourage more women to follow this career path. She
would make community project lists available.
Mr Sibisi pointed to service delivery problems as an explanation for
infrastructure issues and the lack of translation of project incubation into
implementation. He suggested that instead of the CSIR entering the arena of
service delivery, they should interact with those that already were engaged in
service delivery.
Dr D Walwyn (R&D Core Group, CSIR) explained that the TB-nano project aimed
to make TB drugs less toxic. They needed a value chain in order to produce the
drugs. The TB plan is a long-term measure and not an emergency measure. They
are not actively engaged in the MDR situation.
Mr Sturdy said that loans to management were being phased out currently.
The Chairperson thanked all present and said that he hoped discussion would
continue to create a holistic approach and novel way to face challenges.
The meeting was adjourned.
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