M Mangena: South Africa and Rwanda Science Co-operation seminar

30 August 2007

Your Excellency
Minister in the President's Office in charge of science, technology and
scientific research of the Republic of Rwanda
Distinguished guests
Ladies and gentlemen

This day marks an important milestone in the history of our countries'
science and technology systems. It also demonstrates our respective
governments' confidence in the role that science and technology can play in
supporting the efforts to rebuild and renew our continent. Furthermore, it
illustrates our shared belief that our successes as nations, and as a
continent, can only be realised through active co-operation in areas that are
necessary for our development.

The histories and destinies of the people of South Africa and Rwanda are
intertwined. Both our nations come from histories of colonisation. We both did
not allow that situation to cloud our vision, but have steadfastly looked for
ways of conquering adversity by developing effective synergistic relationships.
But now we are faced with new challenges that threaten to obliterate the
effects of the fruits of our labour. Just as we managed to defeat the ills of
the past such as colonisation, the genocide of 1994, and apartheid, so must we
now work even harder to also defeat our current socio-economic threats such as
poverty, underdevelopment, malaria, tuberculosis, and HIV and AIDS? Our
countries possess the necessary material and human resources to achieve the
objectives we set for ourselves.

Together we must find ways of developing the required capacities, and using
them as a basis for creating a better future for our citizens. Science and
technology offer the best means of doing this. We need to develop our people
and systems in ways that would promote research and innovation in order to
maximise our return on investments from our abundant primary mineral and
agricultural resources. If we do the right things now, we will be laying a good
foundation for a prosperous future.

This exercise promises to have positive spin-offs, not only for Rwanda and
South Africa, but also for the rest of the continent and the Diaspora. We
believe our colleagues in the Diaspora are interested at our engagements, and
may also be keen to play a role in improving the lives of their brothers and
sisters in mainland Africa. Therefore, collaborations and engagements such as
this one represent the necessary building blocks for the opportunities they
need to enable them to contribute to the sustainable development of this
continent.

Ladies and gentlemen, this seminar is an important instrument and a catalyst
for our two countries to accelerate their engagement on science, technology and
innovation. It is a barometer of our serious commitment to improving the
well-being of our children. Our scientists should consistently work together on
various initiatives to improve the lives our people. This will set a good
example for our younger generation to realise that the application of science
is important in their daily lives, and this may inspire them to ultimately
pursue scientific and technologically based careers. This bilateral engagement
is therefore meant to further enhance these efforts, and deliberately explore
closer and deeper co-operation for further joint initiatives.

We must, therefore, encourage more of our school-going children to study
natural and life sciences. This will happen easier if our scientists, engineers
and technologists can demonstrate to them that their efforts can lead to the
improvement of our quality of life such as water supply, affordable energy and
improved telecommunications infrastructure and services.

In the programme of bilateral co-operation that will emerge, let us find
ways of benefiting our communities in ways that are meaningful to them. In our
particular circumstances, science will not be perceived as very useful if it
cannot, in the first place, address the problems of food security, disease,
unemployment faced by the majority. But more importantly, our collaboration
should also encourage women to become involved in mainstream science
careers.

Through human history women have always played a meaningful role in the
development of science and technology. It is only in the recent past that the
demands of feudal and industrial economic systems have relegated their role in
the arena of knowledge generation.

This workshop is happening at the end of our Women's Month. It is therefore
fitting to unequivocally communicate the message of support for initiatives
designed at crowning the women who are making strides in natural sciences. We
should do all it takes to support their endeavours to realise their full
potential in the field of science, technology and innovation. Notably, an
African Union initiative which is underway in Johannesburg this week bears
testimony to the seriousness of Africans to support their women in science.

The issue of human capacity development is an important one for our two
countries. We need to constantly look at creating opportunities for mutual
development through conferences and seminars as we are currently doing. But we
also need to increase our efforts in facilitating the exchange of scientists
through post-doctoral research fellowships, sabbaticals and others. We must
discourage the brain drain from the continent by collaborating to provide
support for African scientists by creating opportunities in our countries. We
must continue to attract back our brothers and sisters who have relocated
overseas by creating favourable environments for them to thrive. We want them
to bring back their skills and expertise to benefit the Africans.

As you might be aware, the African Ministers responsible for science and
technology will converge in Kenya at the beginning of November 2007 to review
the progress made thus far, and to witness the handover of leadership from
Senegal to Kenya. This meeting will be a culmination of several meetings that
have taken place since the first African Ministers Council on Science and
Technology (Amcost) meeting in Johannesburg in 2003.

In 2005, Senegal took over from South Africa as Chair. It was in Senegal
that the Ministers adopted the Africa's Science and Technology Consolidated
Plan of Action. This plan is a blueprint detailing Africa's pledge to address
her own challenges through science and technology. Among others, the Plan of
Action covers issues pertaining to biotechnology, biodiversity, indigenous
knowledge systems, food and energy security. South Africa and Rwanda must,
therefore, play an important role to ensure that the implementation of this
plan materialises. This will be achieved through engaging one another and
seeking ways of ensuring that we collaborate in this regard.

As you would recall, this seminar is the result of an exploratory visit that
my department undertook to Rwanda in 2006. It is pleasing to note that the
decisions that were taken by both countries are now being carried out. The
areas of co-operation that were proposed are, among others, capacity building,
information and communication technologies, and biotechnology. Our officials
have been deliberating on these and other topics of interest for the past two
days. We await a comprehensive report from these interactions soon.

We are expecting this seminar to develop guidelines for the establishment of
opportunities for research partnerships and exchange programmes between
researchers. The challenge that still remains is to identify sustainable areas
of joint collaboration that will bring best returns for our two countries. We
must work hard to make this collaboration work.

May I, in closing, thank all the people who worked hard to make this day a
reality, particularly our officials in our respective ministries and diplomatic
missions. To prepare for a gathering of this nature is an enormous exercise. I
also want to thank our researchers, scientists and the institutions that will
be implementing the proposals made over the last two days. I sincerely hope
that they will interact continuously to drive the bilateral process
forward.

I now request the Honourable Minister, Professor Murenzi to make his opening
remarks.

Over to you Honourable Minister!

Thank you.

Issued by: Department of Science and Technology
30 August 2007
Source: Department of Science and Technology (http://www.dst.gov.za)