SASOL and ENGEN Reports: adoption; University of Pretoria: briefing
Science and Technology
13 February 2007
Meeting Summary
A summary of this committee meeting is not yet available.
Meeting report
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE
13 February 2007
SASOL AND ENGEN REPORTS: ADOPTION; UNIVERSITY OF PRETORIA: BRIEFING
Chairperson: Mr E Ngcobo (ANC)
Documents handed out
Study
tour to ENGEN Refinery, Durban
Study tour
to Sasolburg and Secunda
Way forward for
the Research and Innovation Management Programme
University of
Pretoria presentation
Prof MW Pretorius’s
Research and Innovation Management Programme: University of Pretoria
Audio Recording
of the meeting
SUMMARY
The University of Pretoria presented the details of a course in Research
and Innovation Management that Members could enrol in. The Committee also
adopted reports on study tours to SASOL and ENGEN, discussed its study tour to
Sweden and adopted its first term programme.
MINUTES
The Chairperson opened the meeting expressing first the apologies of Ms B T
Ngcobo (ANC) who was not well. He suggested the Committee liase with her to
find out more about her illness. It is a problem with her legs and it is
possible that they will be amputated. He wanted the Committee to express
solidarity with her. They did previously send a card but more must be done.
Ms Z Jansen (Committee Secretary) commented that she had spoken to Ms Ngcobo’s
assistant earlier in the day and she was now home from hospital.
The Chairperson said that they need to know the circumstances and must follow
up on the issue. He expressed apologies from Mr S N Nxumalo (ANC) who was in a
Communications meeting and Mr B J Mnyandu (ANC) who could not attend the
meeting as he was engaged with Foreign Affairs. He gave the Committee a few
minutes to read through the minutes from 14 November 2006 before adopting them.
Mr A R Ainslie (ANC) proposed that the minutes be adopted and Mr J P I Blanche
(DA) seconded.
Mr S L Dithebe (ANC) added that the grammar should be tidied up but that he
agreed to acceptance.
Committee Programme
The Chairperson said that Parliamentary activities could only start after
the budget speech which accounts for the timing of the SASOL and ENGEN study
tours. He asked if the Committee had any additions to the program for the first
term of Parliament. There would probably be changes in the Parliamentary
program but it should not affect the Science and Technology Committee too much.
Mr Ainslie suggested that since the ENGEN presentation will address skills
shortages and this is an issue that affects everyone, they should invite
everyone to this presentation. This is especially needed since it is in a large
venue. He asked whether the oversight visit scheduled for the 6th of
March had been approved.
The Chairperson said that it was approved but they needed to move the date.
With regards to the ENGEN presentation, he had taken personal concern with the
ENGEN briefs and had tried to involve all relevant stakeholders. Even Gen Bantu
Holomisa (UDM) had expressed an interest in attending. He had invited the
Committees on education, labour and others. ENGEN had also invited SASOL.
Mr Dithebe commented on the timeslots saying that the purpose of starting at
10:00AM was so that Members had a chance to take care of administrative issues
before the meeting. He proposed that they start at 10:00 AM but end at 12:30 PM
instead of 1:00 PM as this would allow for a proper sit-down lunch. He
commented that this might be a more cost effective approach. He further said
that meetings on Fridays should end at 12:00 PM instead of at 11:00 PM.
The Chairperson said that the proposal from Mr Dithebe made sense but that
sometimes meetings overran. They should use 12:30 PM as a guideline. He asked
if the Committee accepted his proposal.
Mr Blanche commented that the Friday 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM meeting was designed
to give Members a chance to fly in the afternoon, so they should not change the
time to 12:00 PM. He otherwise agreed with Mr Dithebe.
Mr P D N Maloyi (ANC) said that they should try and meet on the 7th
March from 10:00 AM to 12:30 PM. For the presentation from the Department,
Tuesdays are reserved for Science and Technology so there should be no problem
with a venue.
Mr Ainslie supported this idea but agreed with Mr Blanche about ending at 11:00
AM on a Friday. They should manage their time and speakers better. They should
be disciplined with the number and nature of the questions they ask during
meetings.
The Chairperson said that Mr Blanche made a good point and they should move the
Friday meeting to Tuesday. He did circulate the briefs and there are a lot of
important issues to discuss with the Department and they cannot do the issues
justice in a short time. They want to overhaul how the Department works. He
disagreed with Mr Ainslie as the nature of the presentations determines the
questions. They must try not to duplicate questions. They must try to get the
venue from 9:00 AM for the presentation from the Department.
Mr Ainslie said that he agrees about this particular meeting. He suggested that
if they cannot get through all the questions in the time, they should submit
written questions and engage with the Department in this way all through the
year.
The Chairperson said that he agrees but has a minor argument as written
correspondence takes time and is very open ended as more questions will arise
from each set of answers. They sometimes have problems with venues. He welcomed
the guests from the University of Pretoria who had just arrived.
Mr Maloyi said that he wants the Committee to agree with the Chairperson and Mr
Ainslie. They should avoid long speeches during meetings, mockingly suggesting
that Mr Dithebe was guilty of doing this, and they must manage the Members.
Mr Dithebe playfully replied that he could not agree more.
The Chairperson asked if the Committee accepted the program with amendments.
Ms F Mohamed (ANC) motioned to adopt the program.
Mr Blanche seconded her motion.
The Chairperson suggested that they hear the presentation first and then
continue with the rest of the meeting. He introduced Professors A Buys
(Professor in the Department of Engineering and Technology Management,
University of Pretoria and T Pretorius (Head of the Department of Engineering
and Technology Management, University of Pretoria).
Presentation by the University of Pretoria
Prof A Buys presented the proposal for a course for the Committee to
participate in. The course is a follow up on the one that some Members
completed during the previous year. He said that he had tried to incorporate
the questions that the Members had sent prior to the meeting. They had created
a Research and Innovation Management Programme to provide knowledge to the
Members. He discussed the Department of Engineering and Technology at the
University of Pretoria, including its origins and aims. He continued to describe
what the department offers academically. They have 600 post graduate students
making it the biggest post graduate department in the country and one of the
biggest in the world. He detailed each level of study that they offered. He
also described how the formal course articulates with the short course that
Members did in the last year. They would be exempt from some of the module
lectures. The Certificate programmes are done through the Continuing Education
Department at the University of Pretoria. It is the same as the short course
and it articulates in the same way with the formal degrees. They need to choose
8 modules out of a possible 10. He gave a brief overview of the topics and
discussed the accreditation of the course. It is not accredited with the South
African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) as it is a public institution.
Prof Pretorius added that the certificate is broad so that it will be
applicable outside of Parliament. There are strict rules for the articulation
of the certificate with the degree. There can be special concession from senate
for some people.
Discussion
Mr P J Nefolovhodwe (AZAPO) asked if it was possible to attend only a few of
the modules for non-degree purposes if one felt that they had sufficient
knowledge of the rest.
Ms Mohamed said that she did the previous course but never received
accreditation for it. Some Members have a Masters degree in the Humanities, are
they able to continue in science degrees? She was interested in the other
certificate topics and requested to hear more about their content. She asked if
there were any exams for the certificate.
The Chairperson requested further information on Asset and Maintenance
management in particular.
The Chairperson said that they had all been worried that they did not receive
confirmation or acknowledgement of having completed the previous course.
Prof Pretorius said that there were only assignments for the certificate. The
other certificates had the same requirements. The Asset and Maintenance course
is new because of the growing industry. There are three main aspects to the
course; economic, technical and operational. Humanity backgrounds are not an
issue for the certificates and it is possible to do postgraduate level degrees
as well, there is a special honours/masters course for people who come from
different academic backgrounds. He would look up the certificate issue as soon
as possible.
Pro Pretorius continued to say that it was possible and the University of
Pretoria would give credit for any modules that were completed.
Prof Buys added that if they are interested in the content of the other courses
they could find it on the internet and they will send it to the secretary as
well. He apologised for the issue with the certificates and said that he was
shocked to hear that they had received nothing. He said that the University can
do in house ad hoc courses but would prefer to include people from outside. He
asked the Committee how they felt about this.
The Chairperson said that he had invited people from outside the Committee but
not outside Parliament. It is funded from a parliamentary platform and he needs
to find out about who would come. They would return to the issue.
Mr Ainslie asked if there were a minimum number of people who must do the
course.
Prof Buys said that they do have fixed costs and it will be more expensive per
person with fewer people.
Mr Blanche said that he was pleased that they were having the discussion. He
said that some engineers could only design no matter what the cost, their knowledge
was very narrow. They should consider sending some of their staff, especially
in public administration so that the department is run like a business. The
expanded public works course is perfect for this and they should invite the
Portfolio Committee on Public Works.
Ms Mohamed said that the course should be holistic. Some overseas courses cover
very current issues. They want to create managers and leaders.
Prof Pretorius said that he agrees and that is the philosophy of the
department. They are multidisciplinary and that is why the department was
created. That is their approach.
The Chairperson said that they should follow up on the Technology and Society
course. In 2004 Japan created this and Hungary did as well. Japan is creating a
new nuclear power system and they have a course called ‘nuclear power and
society’. He thinks that the course must be developed. He thanked the
presenters and invited them to lunch. He moved onto the next item on the
agenda: the SASOL and ENGEN reports. He asked for input.
Mr Blanche motioned to adopt the report.
Mr Nefolovhodwe seconded his motion.
The Chairperson asked about the ENGEN report.
Mr Dithebe said that the secretary’s name should be put under supporting staff
and not under Members. He noted that his name was missing even though he was
there. He also pointed out that Mr Nefolovhodwe belonged to AZAPO and not APO
as it stood in the document.
The Chairperson asked if they accepted the report with corrections.
Mr Ainslie adopted the report.
Mr Blanche seconded the motion.
The Chairperson said that they had been waiting for the program for their trip
to Sweden. They needed to submit it. The application was ready for submission
that day.
Mr Nefolovhodwe asked what date the trip was planned for.
The Chairperson said the 9th to 13th of April. They were
applying for all the Members to attend. The secretary would circulate the
program. There was one announcement: there will be a course in space science in
France from the Department. They must think about it. It is a week long. They
should have a presentation from the Director-General about it.
Mr Dithebe said that Mr Ainslie is proficient in French and should thus get
involved.
The Chairperson closed the meeting.
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