Enhancing Research Impact in Africa through Strategic Partnerships. Science Granting Councils (SGCs)

Enhancing Research Impact in Africa through Strategic Partnerships Science Granting Councils (SGCs) RAW 2016 Dr Sepo Hachigonta Director- Multilateral and Strategic Initiatives International Relations and Corporation

Science, Technology & Society Technological and Scientific revolutions underpin socioeconomic advances.

Mandate of SGC in National Development SGC are essential actors in national systems of innovation. Some functions include: Disbursing funds for research and development (R&D) in STEM and Humanities; Promotion of competitive research excellence Building human capacity through: Scholarships and bursaries Exposure of students to research and infrastructure Providing opportunity for staff to participate in significant experiences abroad

Mandate of SGC in National Development Contribute to identifying, developing and monitoring national research agendas and priorities; Providing advise on science, technology and innovation (STI) policies; Managing bilateral and multilateral science and technology (S&T) agreements; and Assessing the communication, uptake and impact of publicly funded research Conducting research and innovation

A Global Overview of SGC NSF (USA) - $7.5 Billion DFG (Germany) $3.2 Billion JSPS (Japan) - $3 Billion NCST (Malawi) - $3 Million NRF - $300 Million

SGC - Source of Funding National Governments Regional Bodies (e.g. EU) Private sector Developing and/ Strategic partners Donations Services IP R&D

Africa- SGC Challenges

Lack of sustained funding base Limited organizational capabilities and staff skills Knowledge gaps relevant to local needs IDRC Study on Africa SGCs Poor application of knowledge for economic and social use Limited knowledge exchange/ sharing among SGCs Poor coordination and duplication of roles among various STI actors, esp. national and sector agents

Low capacity to develop, collect, analyse, and use STI indicators High dependency on international funding agencies (>80%, AOSTI) Lack of dedicated STI Ministries Poor implementation of policy decisions, for e.g. operationalization of new organizations Weak partnerships with industry and other private sector actors

Cooperation and Collaboration Has the potential to enhance: the quality of science, provide economies of scale and avoid duplication, address issues that can only be solved by working together.

Strength in Numbers Capacity Building and Training Sharing ideas in conferences, seminars, etc Joint reviews and evaluation Joint research funding to address regional challenges Information sharing Sharing ICT systems Staff exchange Joint publications Joint sourcing of external funds

IRC Partnerships Approach

From an International Perspective The nature of internationalisation has changed, and strategic roles have changed Flexibility for new approaches and demand-driven strategies is unique to the SA NSI (and NRF, guided by its mandate) Locally relevant, internationally competitive Strengthening of the intellectual knowledge leadership and role of the NRF Established nature, convening power Leader in Africa, and beyond Reorientation of grantmaking FOR internationalisation Institutional (and with DST) Alignment of approaches Avoidance of duplication Common vision/ understanding in the organisation Moving beyond fragmented and small approaches

Principles Internationalisation of the NRF, within the context of the contribution and value addition to and for South Africa Global view focus on Africa IMPACT orientation Excellence and inclusivity Truly global and effective partnerships for SA support Competitiveness Innovation

NRF Global Reach

Joint Research Investments in Africa R 30 000 000 R 25 000 000 R 20 000 000 Number of Joint Projects Joint Investment R 15 000 000 R 10 000 000 R 5 000 000 R 0 22 13 10 14 24 20 66 15 18

IRC Approach Two dimensions Core granting Strategy, positioning, value-addition

IRC Strategy aligned to Vision 2020 Catalysing knowledge production for societal benefit An internationally competitive, transformed and representative research system Leading-edge research and infrastructure platforms A reputable and influential agency shaping the science and technology system Scientifically literate and engaged society AC, OC, MSI bi- and multilaterals - New funding modalities - Expansion and strengthening of strategic agreements AIMS, SANWATCE, SanBio Continuous technical audits Harmonised policies and strategies Gov/ KPIs IR Seed Fund - DST SGCI Newton SASAC IRTGs Canada Chairs Programme Global partnerships for mega programmes Strategic partnerships for African scholarship and student development (TWAS, AWARD) Global Knowledge Partnership Strengthening regional networks: ARUA, RUFORUM IORA BRICS innovation Fundamental change in infrastructure mobility SGCI MacArthur: $100 mill. GRC ERC H2020 Future Earth Nobel Lecture Series Ambassadorial Forum Global Eye publication SFSA RAW Intl visitors Norway Science Week International partners meeting Gender: Sweden, UNESCO

Strategy, positioning, value-addition

Comprehensive Africa Focus Strategies/ Programmes Future Earth (SA; Rwanda) Restrengthening of ICSU ROA IORA GRC SGCI Africa Flagships: SANWATCE, SANBio, AIMS Canada Trilateral Chairs (Africa) Astronomy Bilateral Chair; VLBI LEAP-Agri TWAS SASAC Africa PhDs Strengthening ARUA Specific inter-agency agreements NFs research and agreements NRF Africa Engagement

The Global Research Council - Motivation Researchers collaborate domestically, regionally and globally! Funding agencies need to better enable and facilitate international collaborations International research benefits from establish norms Bilateral relationships can provide a template, but for many challenges multilateral cooperation is essential How can funding agencies work together to support the global research enterprise?

Mandate of the GRC Organisation comprised of the heads of science and engineering funding agencies from around the world, focus on publicly funded research organizations Two goals: To identify best practices for funding organizations To support the establishment of world-class funding organizations in countries with an emerging research investment Will Provide a Forum for HORCs to: Address common issues Build trust between research funding organizations Foster multilateral research cooperation

GRC 2016 Africa Regional Consultation Date Session Convener Participants 23 November Gender in Science, Innovation, Technology and Engineering: the voices of science granting councils in Africa NRF, FNI Science Granting Councils, African policymakers, gender experts, researchers, young scientists 23 November Academic symposium on Agriculture Innovation DFG,FNI, NRF Science Granting Councils, African policymakers, agriculture experts, researchers, young scientists 24 November Global Research Council (GRC) Africa Regional Meeting [Closed Session] NRF, FNI African Heads of Science Granting Councils, African policymakers and the GRC ISC 24 November Monitoring, Evaluation and Leaning R3 Workshop Science Granting Councils Initiative (SGCI) SGCI SGC senior coordinators, SGCI collaborating technical agencies, SGCI MEL expertise 25 November SGCI Annual Forum Research Excellence in Africa: science granting councils as catalysts SGCI Science Granting Councils, policymakers, researchers, young scientists

2016 GRC Meeting May 2016 in New Delhi, India Jointly hosted by Research Councils UK (RCUK) and the Indian Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB) 50 Heads of Research Councils participating from around 45 countries

The two themes of the 2017 GRC global meeting are: Capacity Building and Connectivity among granting agencies worldwide; and The Dynamic Interplay between Fundamental Research and Innovation

The Science Granting Councils Initiative in Sub-Saharan Africa (SGCI)

SGCI: In a nutshell Period: 5-years (April 2015- March 2020) Budget: R153.3M/ CAD13.9M Funding partners: National Research Foundation (NRF) United Kingdom s Department for International Development (DFID) Canada s International Development Research Centre (IDRC)

SGCI Objectives Strengthen the ability of science granting councils to: Manage research Design and monitor research programmes based on the use of robust STI indicators Support the transfer of knowledge to the private sector Establish partnerships with other science system actors

Increased use of STI indicators to design and monitor research programmes Expected Outcomes NRF & IDRC (Collaborating Technical Agency) Effective research management practices Strategic Partners SGCs Increased knowledge transfer to the private sector Increasingly coordinated and networked

SGCI Partner Countries Eastern Africa: Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda West and Central Africa: Burkina Faso, Côte d'ivoire, Ghana, Senegal Southern Africa: Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Zambia, Zimbabwe

SGCI Governance Advisory Council Governance Committee Executive Committee African Science Granting Councils Implementing Partners (NRF and IDRC) Collaborating Technical Agencies SARIMA, NEPAD, ACTS

Research Management Focus on the internal governance of science granting councils; strengthening institutional systems and processes 1. Needs and capacities assessment 2. Customized training courses and workshops 3. Effective use of IT systems and infrastructure 4. Supporting collaborations and partnerships 5. Knowledge management

Use of STI Indicators Focus on SGC processes and systems to support strategies for research programme design and priority setting 1. Develop, collect, analyse and disseminate indicators relevant to STI policy and associated instruments 2. Develop and use indicators for assessing STI policy relevance and advocating for increased R&D investments 3. Design and monitor research programmes by developing a guide to best practices 4. SGCs as advocates for the appreciation and use of STI indicators in policy formulation and decision making

Private Sector Engagement Focus on how do SGCs: 1. Foster public-private partnerships, and support collaborative projects on public-private partnerships 2. Design cross-country cooperative agreements and manage cooperative grants as a mechanism to fund joint initiatives. Some Activities 1. Baseline studies 2. Disbursement of sub-grants 3. Priority setting for regional projects

Partnerships Support for increased partnerships amongst ASGCs and sister organisations globally 1. Annual Regional meetings 2. Annual Forums Production of commissioned papers an outcome

Some Reflections Importance of synergies/ alignment across objectives The bigger picture: A better South Africa in a better Africa connected to a better world The dual role of the NRF (funder and implementer) SGCI only one of a multitude of interconnected strategic and multilateral initiatives: for all partners

Thank you