Question NW1453 to the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation
22 May 2023 - NW1453
Mogale, Mr T to ask the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation
Given that Indigenous Knowledge Registration Systems (IKRS) have been cited by his department as pivotal systems in the preservation of indigenous knowledge, (a) what kind of indigenous knowledge is stored in the specified systems and (b) how accessible are the IKRS to the (i) general public and (ii) academic populace?
Reply:
a) What kind of indigenous knowledge is stored in the specified system?
The knowledge in the system is constructed around indigenous claims of communities across the country. It includes knowledge on African Traditional Medicine, indigenous food, agriculture, astronomy, arts and culture, governance and other Indigenous Knowledge disciplines. The current metadata makes provision for multimedia recordings of African Traditional Medicine and indigenous food.
The other knowledge in the system is the Pharmacopoeia, that is, a list detailing various medicinal plants and their treatments to different ailments.
b) How accessible are the IKRS to (i) general public and (ii) academic populance.
The system has different levels of access, that is, open access and confidential access.
(i) The public
The public can access the National Indigenous Systems Office (NIKSO) page. It is constituted by the 2019 IK Act in all 11 official written languages.
The IK contents of community’s multimedia recordings is classified for confidential access only and it is not open to the public as the IK Regulations governing such access has not yet been Gazetted.
(ii) The academic populace
The academic populance can access the Pharmacopoeia and the NIKSO page.