(Parliamentary budget vote debate: Science and Innovation)
Science and Innovation is one of the departments that mainly invest in the future.
Therefore, funding this Department ought to be high up on government's list of priorities. The approximately R9 billion, which is allocated to Science and Innovation, out of a non-interest expenditure total of R1,6 trillion does not speak of high priority, though.
The Department must get credit for the good work it does with a relatively small budget.
The National Research Foundation (NRF) is responsible for funding post-graduate students, and also funds various large technological projects, like the SKA radio telescope.
In addition, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) do fundamental scientific work.
The Technology Innovation Agency (TIA) evaluates and funds business plans based on technological innovation, while the South African National Space Agency (SANSA) keeps the country on the forefront of this emerging technology.
And the Academy of Science in South Africa (ASSAF) continually contributes by resolving political debates using scientific evidence – the most recent example is the debates on the impact of seismic exploration in oceans.
There is, however, some room for improvement. Kapa Biosystems is an enterprise founded by the TIA, but the state's share was sold for far less than its real economic value. Attempts to recover the losses continue, but success cannot be guaranteed. Furthermore, the fence that the Department must erect around the 131 000-hectare site of the SKA radio telescope remains no more than a promise.
The biggest problem in the Department is that continuity, which is absolutely vital in a knowledge system, is being sacrificed on the altar of transformation. Vacant positions are a problem in nearly every entity and division of the Department. The biggest cause of this is that candidates with the required knowledge and experience are recruited for better opportunities outside of the Department. And yet, there is an insistence on meeting transformation quotas, which create an artificial scarcity of skills.
The resources allocated to the Department of Science and Innovation show that the government wants to invest as little as possible, while it expects scientists to perform miracles.
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