President of the South African Institute of Electrical Engineers, Mr Du Toit Grobler;
Deputy President, Dr Angus Hay
Office Bearers and Members of the Council of the Institute
Honoured guests
Ladies and gentlemen
Thank you for inviting me to share this centenary celebration with you. Let me begin by paying tribute to the Institute's one hundred years of service to the engineering profession. At the outset I want to congratulate all of you – Institute, staff, engineers, supporters on your years of progress and achievement.
The Institute has had a great deal of interaction with the Department of Science and Technology. Only a few days ago I met a delegation led by your President, Mr Du Toit Grobler, and members of the Institute have previously met with Deputy Minister Derek Hanekom and Dr Phil Mjwara, the Director-General of the department.
As you know, one of my department's key focuses is on fostering and enhancing partnerships across the national system of innovation in order to promote research, development and innovation. We see the Institute as an important partner of government in placing science and technology at the heart of progress and development in our country.
The activities of the electrical engineering profession, including research, manufacturing, electronics, telecommunications, mining, measurement control, and power infrastructure services, are all critical for South Africa, and make a valuable contribution to human-capital development.
The Institute and the Department are committed to increasing the number of learners enrolling for engineering qualifications. We have grappled, through JIPSA over the past two years, to find ways of strengthening engineering education. This has involved funding more places for engineers in higher education institutions, creating and strengthening training activities, as well as creating new engineering initiatives and schools.
We are the only country in Africa that has an engineering academy. Engineering academies recognise young engineers who have played important roles in providing innovative solutions to sustainable development challenges. Over the last three years, we earmarked funding for engineers in the higher education budget and graduate through-put rates have improved in the leading universities.
Currently, 1 500 BEng and BSC Engineering students graduate each year. We need to produce more. We have a shortage of engineers in municipal employment, in industry, and at universities. Joint Initiative on Priority Skills Acquisition (Jipsa) played an important role in increasing investment in engineering and this policy will continue under the new government of President Zuma. We also need to increase the number of artisans.
The reorganisation of the functions of government will assist us to reach our target, which is to train 50 000 qualified artisans by 2010. In the mean time we encourage the Institute to adopt some of the Dinaledi schools, which are desperately in need of benefactors.
The Institute has shown an interest in partnering with the department in some of its planned projects, particularly the National Space Agency and the Square Kilometre Array (SKA). There is plenty of room for co-operation, perhaps made easier by the Institute's affiliation to the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers which works closely with the National Research Foundation.
You are probably aware of the department's relationship with the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) involving the Group on Earth Observations. This is an intergovernmental group currently leading a worldwide effort to build a Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS). The Group on Earth Observations was launched in response to calls for action by the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development and the G8. GEOSS will enable the world to respond better to the many environmental challenges we face.
The work of the Group on Earth Observations is directly linked to what we refer to as the global change 'grand challenge', which aligns South Africa with other countries in managing challenges brought about by climate and related change.
A capacity building programme involving the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers is underway and will be implemented with the involvement of the National Research Foundation.
In closing, let me say, as a non-scientist or engineer, that scientists and engineers have to do a lot more to popularise what they do. Everyone knows who Isambard Kingdom Brunel was or Christian Barnard. But can someone name a leading electrical engineer?
There is a serious point here. Radio, podcasts, and Youtube provide us with a magnificent platform for the popularization of science and for explaining "how things work". We have to do more to exploit these new technologies and explain how they can improve the lives of ordinary people.
I have to remind engineers that there is immense distrust and mistrust of sci/eng/tech, especially in regard to new research. I think of the huge public quarrels over AIDS or the Millennium bug, the bug that never was. There was public misunderstanding of these topics, but the experts and the professionals did not help us ordinary mortals understand.
Let me encourage the Institute to do more to communicate with South African citizens about the work of electrical engineers. The department will continue to engage with the Institute, as there is considerable opportunity for useful co-operation between us.
Finally, allow me to express on behalf government our best wishes to the Institute and its more than 5 000 members on one hundred years of productive engagement.
Thank you.
Issued by: Department of Science and Technology
4 June 2009
Source: Department of Science and Technology (http://www.dst.gov.za)
