M Mangena: Launch of Science and Technology-National Research Foundation
(DST-NRF) Internship Programme

21 September 2006

Executive Director: Institutional Capacity Development (NRF), Dr Romila
Maharaj
Our Guests of Honour, the Interns for the 2006/07 DST - NRF Internship
Programme;
Colleagues and friends
Ladies and gentlemen

The implementation of internship programmes is one of the critical national
priorities aimed at addressing unemployment among the young people of South
Africa. This reality was again emphasised by President Mbeki in his opening of
Parliament address earlier this year. In support of this programme, government
is determined to increase the resource allocation for innovation, research and
development and to enlarge the pool of young researchers in science,
engineering and technology.

Government has been working on specific interventions to ensure that the
Accelerated and Shared Growth Initiative for South Africa (AsgiSA) succeeds in
achieving its goals. These include, among others, the reduction of unemployment
levels especially among the youth. These interventions are intended to serve as
catalysts to our growth and development strategies.

One issue that could negatively affect the capacity of public and private
sectors to meet the goals set by AsgiSA is the lack of scarce skills. For this
purpose, the Joint Initiative on Priority Skills Acquisition (JIPSA) has been
established. The JIPSA will provide a vehicle through which government,
business; labour and civil society can act jointly to respond to the skills
challenge. In this area internship programmes can be of considerable value to
facilitate the direct transfer of scarce skills from mentor to intern.

South Africans have a pioneering spirit, courage and the determination to
succeed. We are a nation of winners. These traits continue to drive us as we
strive to find fresh and innovative solutions to deal with our challenges. It
is difficult to explain how we, a relatively small country here at the
southernmost tip of Africa, manage to compete with the best in the world and
succeed beyond expectations.

Ample proof of this ability is evinced by innovative technologies developed
by South African researchers. One such example is South Africa's new low
earth-orbiting micro-satellite, SumbandilaSAT, due to be launched into space on
the back of a Russian missile from a Russian submarine in the Barents Sea in
December.

SumbandilaSAT is being built at Sunspace and Information Systems in
Stellenbosch, the company responsible for developing South Africa's first
satellite, Sunsat. It forms part of my department's three-year satellite
development programme. This programme is aimed at demonstrating our country's
space science capabilities and providing SA with affordable access to space
technology.

SumbandilaSAT will orbit the earth at a distance of about 80 kilometres. The
high-resolution images it can generate will help manage disasters such as oil
spills, fires and floods, assist in urban planning and monitoring crops and
gather data on climate change. The new technology used in the development of
this satellite is ample proof that South Africans can lead the way in
international science and technology.

Another showcase for South African science and technology is coming up very
soon in fact only in three days' time. I want to invite all of you to attend
Africa's premier science event, the International Science, Innovation and
Technology Exhibition (INSITE), which will take place at the Sandton Convention
Centre from 24 to 27 September 2006. The INSITE provides us with an invaluable
platform to showcase our country's advances in scientific knowledge, and to
compare and benchmark our achievements with the world. In South Africa,
September is welcomed as a month of hope, joy and celebration as it is
traditionally associated with spring. It signifies new beginnings, new life,
and renewed hope.

In order to continue achieving all the milestones mentioned above, we need
to increase our pool of scientists, engineers and technologists. Therefore, one
of the reasons we are here today is to mark one such new beginning, one aimed
at assisting some of South Africa's brightest young people in embarking on a
career of their choice, which holds the promise of success, hope and personal
fulfilment. Participation in the internship programme will not only be of
benefit to the interns, but will also be of immense value to our country as a
whole. This is one of the initiatives intended to ensure a steady stream of
skilled and qualified people into our Science System. The national system of
innovation is the powerhouse that at once enables us to compete favourably with
other nations and equips us to successfully fight enemies such as poverty, HIV
and AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis.

My department, in partnership with the National Research Foundation,
introduced its first internship programme in 2005. The outcomes of this
programme, ladies and gentlemen, have been highly encouraging. They promise to
produce significant advances in addressing some of our country's most pressing
issues such as the skills shortage and the scourge of youth unemployment.

Through this programme, we aim to place graduate interns in the Science
Councils, Science Institutions and Science Programmes, in order to increase our
chances of attracting and retaining suitable candidates from the pool of
interns.

The internship programme is also linked to the National Skills Development
Strategy (NSDS), which was established with the intention of radically
transforming education and training in South Africa by improving both the
quality and quantity of training of our students. The objective is to achieve
increased competitiveness by industry, and to improve the standard of living of
all South Africans.

The internship programme of 2005/06 yielded some interesting and impressive
statistics:

Of the 49 interns, 36 have gained employment. From those who gained
employment, 32 found employment relevant to their field of study, while four of
the interns are employed in areas that are not relevant to their field of
study. Twenty are employed in permanent positions and 16 on contract. Of the 49
interns, only 10 are still unemployed, and of these three are pursuing
postgraduate studies.

Due to the success rate of the programme, intern numbers have grown from 49
to 165 for the 2006/07 financial year. For this financial year, we received
applications from graduates specialising in 50 areas ranging from computer
science, mathematics, chemistry and physics to microbiology, biochemistry,
genetics and environment science. The science system in South Africa can only
benefit from the influx of such skills. We congratulate all the interns in this
programme. You have embarked on a route that will not only lead to your own
personal and professional success, but will also benefit your families, your
children, your communities, the National Science System and our country as a
whole. We urge you to make the most of this learning experience.

We encourage you to become lifelong students. Try to learn and do something
new every day. Keep track of new developments, changing technology and trends.
Better still, drive those changes and spearhead new developments. Breathe new
life into old projects and programmes. Infuse your everyday working life with a
spirit of innovation and entrepreneurship.

Ladies and gentlemen, may I reiterate my earlier assertion that September is
a month of new beginnings and renewed hope. It is also a period of reflection.
Therefore, it is fitting that it is also the month in which we celebrate as
South African Origins Month. My department has declared September African
Origins Month, one in a series of months dedicated to specific science
platforms.

South Africa has one of the richest fossil records in the world, which
include dinosaurs, mammal-like reptiles and even humans. Indeed, the fossil
evidence shows that the human species originated in Africa, and then populated
the world from here. African Origins Month focuses on this remarkable
palaeontological and archaeological heritage.

In September South Africa also celebrates Heritage Month, to afford each
citizen the opportunity to reflect on what our collective heritage actually is.
South Africa's heritage encompasses our history, values, norms and culture.
Increasingly, South Africans are beginning to appreciate what we have inherited
and what we are capable of as a collective.

South Africa has produced winners. The unique manner in which we do things
is a key driver of our success as a nation. We continue to inspire the world
about new ways of doing things, because our unique racial combinations create
refreshing possibilities. This is a feature that gives us the edge. For
example, it was definitely our creative ingenuity, collective approach, and our
focus on transformation that ensured the success of our bid to host the FIFA
Soccer World Cup 2010. South Africans always strive to achieve win-win
solutions. The collaborative approach encapsulated by the DST–NRF Internship
Programme also enables us to plan and achieve fresh and sustainable
solutions.

Thank you.

Issued by: Department of Science and Technology
21 September 2006