The third National Advisory Council on Innovation (NACI) held its inaugural meeting on Tuesday 2 June 2009 at Villa Sterne Boutique Hotel, Pretoria. The guest of honor at this meeting was Ms Naledi Pandor, the newly appointed Minister of Science and Technology. The meeting was attended by NACI Councillors and members of the NACI Secretariat. Dr Steve Lennon, chairperson of NACI chaired the meeting. The main aim of the meeting was to inaugurate the third NACI Council, report on NACI's progress, map out NACI's work plan as well as to induct the new NACI members on the nature, role and contribution of NACI to the National System of Innovation. The meeting was also aimed at introducing the new Minister to NACI activities and getting a sense of what she expects from NACI as her advisory body.

The Minister was invited to inaugurate the third NACI Council, as appointed by Cabinet to serve for a four year term ending February 2013. In her address, the Minister emphasised the important role that NACI could play in promoting science and technology in order to address the socio-economic challenges facing South Africa.

Interested parties are invited to participate in this exciting national workshop hosted by the National Biotechnology Advisory Committee (NBAC).

The workshop will focus on policies and strategies related to the development of, and investments into, appropriate technologies for sustainable development (improved quality of life and wealth creation) in South Africa. it will aim to brong together stakeholders and representatives from public and private sectors including NGOs to explore in particular the scope and nature of the policy challenges presented by biotechnology in the following themes: potential impact if TIA, impact of the IPR Act, SA policy contradiction in GMO, Stem cells regulations and Bioethics in SA.

The results of the following three studies recently conducted by NBAC will also be presented and discussed at the workshop.

• The impact of the South African public understanding of biotechnology
• The funding environment of South African biotechnology
• Biotechnology capacity: comparative case studies

Who should attend and speakers
The workshop is intended to provide a forum for sharing information and experience among government officers, entrepreneurs, and research scientists involved in policy making and technology R&D in the field of biotechnology.

Workshop fees
No registration fee will be charged, but delegates will be responsible for their own travel and accomodation costs and arrangements.

Registration
Please register with the Workshop Secretariat not later than 13 July 2009 as limited space is available.

Workshop Secretariat
Ms Thereza Botha
Tel: 012 807 0869
Mobile: 083 375 7373
Fax: 012 807 1699 / 086 549 0184
Email: thereza@technoscene.co.za

Dr Anne Lidgard, a Programme Director and member of the management team of the Innovation Actors Division at VINNOVA in Sweden presented a paper entitled "Swedish Research & Innovation System and VINNOVA Policies and lessons learnt" at a NACI seminar held on 18 March 2009 at the DST. The seminar was attended by the members of the NACI Secretariat and the DST officials from various programmes. VINNOVA is the Swedish Governmental Agency for Innovation Systems that is tasked with promoting sustainable growth by financing needs-driven R&D and developing innovation systems.

Dr Lidgard discussed the Swedish National Innovation System (including international comparisons), its main actors and their responsibilities. Dr Lidgard distinguished between "curiosity driven" and "needs driven" R&D and presented a summary of the VINNOVA strategy to promote Sweden's research and innovation system. She elaborated on the triple helix model for the promotion of collaboration between universities, industry and the public sector and presented examples of VINNOVA funding instruments as well as some VINNOVA success stories.

The Presidency's Deputy Head: Policy Coordination and Advisory Services Alan Hirsch responded to a series of questions posed to him by Engineering News Editor Terence Creamer about the so-called 'Framework for South Africa's Response to the International Economic Crisis' released late last week.

The 'Framework' document, which was drafted by government, business, labour and community representative, under the aegis of The Presidency and the National Economic Development and Labour Council, is effectively South Africa's first attempt at articulating a possible stimulus package to deal with the domestic economic consequences of the prevailing downturn in the global economy.

this article was edited by Terence Creamer of Engineering News

The NACI workshop, Broad-based innovations to address socio-economic challenges faced by South Africa was hailed as very timely by the delegates. The key objective of the workshop was to generate strategies for broad-based innovations relevant to socio-economic development.

In his opening address, the Minister of Science and Technology, Mr Mosibudi Mangena encouraged participants to think about how South Africa could use innovation to nurture more, and more focused innovation to address the country's many socio-economic challenges. Other speakers focussed on: The cultures of innovation (Prof Andrew Jamison, Aalborg University, Denmark), Mental models and successful innovation (Mr Gordon Butte & Ms Sarah Thorne, Decision Partners, USA), Community-based innovations from informal sector perspective (Prof Hassan Kaya, North West University) and Formal sector perspectives on broad-based innovations (Ms Marjorie Pyoos, DST)

There was broad agreement among speakers, lead-in discussants and break-away groups that

• A new approach  to the process of innovation is critical as a basis for socio-economic development in South Africa
• Social factors underlying innovation need to be understood for innovation to succeed
• An orientation of partnership should be fostered between the first and second economy as innovation role players
• An openness to potential innovations emanating from the second economy

A total of 112 participants were drawn from government departments, science councils, universities, funding and development agencies, research-based institutions and the private sector.

One of the outcomes of the workshop will be the production of a discussion document. The discussion document - and responses to it - will form a basis for NACI to develop an advice that will be presented to the Minister of Science and Technology.

NACI recently hosted a lunch seminar which was addressed by Andrew Jamison, Professor of Technology and Society at Aalborg University in Denmark His topic was Changing Contexts of Knowledge Production and was based on an analytical framework published in a recent book, Hubris and Hybrids - A Cultural History of Technology and Science authored by him and Mikael Hård. The seminar was attended by NACI, DST and ASSAf staff.

The central themes of the presentation were the changing contexts of science and technology, and the broader cultural, economic, and environmental aspects of knowledge production.

He argued that knowledge production has increasingly become an integral part of our contemporary way of life, and, not least, central to economic development. Knowledge produced today is fundamentally different from that produced between the 17th and 19th centuries. During the past century, knowledge production has produced a variety of "hybrid" forms of knowledge with important implications for science, technology and innovation policy.