The Department of Science and Innovation (DSI) on Monday highlighted that its budget for the financial year (FY) 2023/24, tabled in Parliament last week, was higher than that for the previous FY. The FY 2023/24 budget totalled R10.9-billion, in comparison to the FY 2022/23 budget allocation of R9.1-billion, an increase of R1.8-billion, or nearly 20%. (South Africa’s average inflation rate last year was 6.9%; in January this year it was also 6.9%, it averaged 7% during the first quarter of this year, declining to 6.8% in April.)

The budget was tabled by Higher Education, Science and Innovation Minister Dr Blade Nzimande. He gave the budget the theme “Using science, technology and innovation to grow our country and together resolve its challenges”. He assured that the DSI would continue to contribute to the country’s economic recovery and to the creation of a capable State through its science, technology and innovation (STI) decadal plan and its STI budget coordination “mechanism”.

“We also remain resolute to increase gross domestic investment in research and development as a percentage of gross domestic product with the aim of achieving the National Development Plan’s target of 1.5%,” he affirmed. The implementation of the Innovation Fund will be scaled up, to support South African technology companies in their early development and expansion stages.

The DSI would continue to implement the country’s Hydrogen Society Roadmap, he also assured. He highlighted the CoalCO2-X project, into which the DSI had invested some R50-million. “Through the CoalCO2-X project, we have supported a carbon capture and utilisation technology, which captures carbon dioxide from flue gas and then converts it into a fertiliser salt using ammonia,” he explained. This technology had been successfully demonstrated, in January, at a cement plant in Limpopo province.

The DSI is also finalising its national solar energy research facility masterplan. Once set up, this facility will support the development, commercialisation and deployment, in both the power and fuel sectors, of solar-based technologies.

Further, the department is developing a circular economy STI roadmap. It has already set up a Circular Economy Demonstration Fund, which will be implemented by the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (which falls under the DSI).

The Department will continue to support the development of a local messenger ribonucleic acid (better known as mRNA) vaccine technology transfer hub. This hub serves to diversify global vaccine production and in particular stimulate vaccine production in Africa. This is part of an international cooperative programme headed by the World Health Organisation.

The DSI is also supporting the development of small, medium-sized and microenterprises in various sectors, including agriculture. It is likewise supporting the protection and promotion of the country’s indigenous knowledge systems.

“Part of ensuring we have the requisite number of scientists, researchers and innovators is by deliberately producing a critical mass of young black and women scientists and researchers,” pointed out Deputy Higher Education, Science and Innovation Minister Buti Manamela. “To this end, in 2012/22, a total of 5 643 Honours and Master’s students, and 2 527 PhD students were supported.”