South Africa’s Head of State, Cyril Ramaphosa, addressed the first Presidential Plenary on Science, Technology and Innovation. He emphasised that the initiative is an important step that brings together government, academia, civil society and industry to jointly develop South Africa’s innovation system. This is reported by the
official website of the government of South Africa.

Ramaphosa said science, technology and innovation are essential for a thriving economy and society. According to the Global Innovation Index 2022 published by the World Intellectual Property Organisation, South Africa was ranked 61st in terms of innovation potential among 132 countries represented in the ranking. The country also outperforms the average for upper-middle-income countries in market development, knowledge and technology output, and creative output.

The President noted significant achievements in higher education. For example, the number of students graduating from public universities has increased from 60,000 in 1994 to 230,000 in 2018. The proportion of graduates in science, engineering and technology is increasing compared to graduates in the humanities. Ramaphosa emphasised the need to increase investment in the country’s youth and in research and development.

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