Minister Naledi Pandor says more should be spent on research. Photo: World Economic Forum via Flickr
Not enough money is being spent on research and development in South Africa.
This is what Minister of Science and TechnologyNaledi Pandor said when she presented the department’s National Survey of Research and Experimental Development report for 2008/2009 yesterday.
BuaNews reports that even though R2.4 billion more was spent on research and development than last year, the government’s target of spending 1% of GDP on this field has not been met.
This year R21 billion has been spent on research and development. According to Pandor, President Jacob Zuma wants spending on this field to increase to 1.5% of GDP by 2014.
Nelson Mandela's prison cell on Robben Island. Photo: Samantha Marx
On International Nelson Mandela Day, people all over the world are meant to spend 67 minutes doing something to benefit their community. Creative Consulting & Development Works has some ideas of how you can get involved in your community as well.
The man behind this day
Anti-apartheid activist and first democratic president of South Africa, Nelson Rholihlala Mandela, is the inspiration behind this day, because even though he was jailed by the apartheid government for 27 years, he never saw his release from prison as time for revenge. After his release on 11 February 1990 he advocated peace, reconciliation and the rebuilding of the South African nation.
According to www.mandeladay.comNelson Mandela gave 67 years of his life fighting for the rights of humanity. “All we are asking is that everyone gives 67 minutes of their time, whether it’s supporting your chosen charity or serving your local community.”
What can you do?
Creative Consulting & Development Works, as a research, evaluation and communications consultancy working in a development context, often deals with non-profit organisations and we would like to suggest that you volunteer to help some of them on Mandela Day or any other day of the year!
One of the Community Based Organisations in the NACOSA network.
NACOSA is a national civil society network of HIV and AIDS and TB role players, which includes NGOs, CBOs, FBOs and other developmental organisations, who seek to contribute to reducing the impact of HIV and AIDS.
You can contact NACOSA at info@nacosa.org.za or on 021 461 7348 and perhaps get involved in a Community Based Organisation close to you.
Adonis Musati Project
Recently, Development Works presented a Preferred Futuring workshop to the NGO for refugees, Adonis Musati Project. AMP provides clothing, blankets, food packs, medicine and toiletries to refugees and help them to compile and send out their CVs. They help refugees to access transport, accommodation and training. The Adonis Musati Project also has a halfway house for refugee children and single mothers.
You can help Adonis Musati by providing food or toiletries, volenteering to transport goods, assisting on week mornings in the refugee office, or making a cash donation. Contact AMP on 021 448 3348 or email Gayle at gayle@adonismusatiproject.org.
View the video below on the Preferred Futuring workshop that we conducted for the Adonis Musati Project as part of our Corporate Social Responsibility.
Now that South Africa has proven that it can present a world class Cup and Closing Ceremony, what will it tackle next? Photo: AFP - Monirul Bhuiyan
The final match of the 2010 FIFA World Cup was played last night and Spain walked away with the cup. Now that the World Cup has come to an end, newspapers are already starting to ask “What next for South Africa?” How can we harness the positive energy generated during the past month to achieve much needed development objectives for the country?
IOL.co.za reports that “rarely can a global event have generated so much advance pessimism as the World Cup”, but South Africa has silenced all its critics by hosting a successful tournament. The closing ceremony held at Soccer City in Johannesburg last night was especially spectacular and of a world class standard. Images were projected onto the field, Shakira sang Waka Waka and hundreds of dancers demonstrated various South African dances.
Keep on Feeling it
Will the closing ceremony mean the end of the positive vibe in South Africa? Photo: www.shine2010.co.za via Flickr
“Feel it!” was the catch phrase of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Ray Hartley writes “We felt ‘it’. Now let’s define and bottle ‘it’” in the Sunday Times. According to him everyone felt a certain emotion when Bafana Bafana sang the national anthem before the kick-off of this cup. And we kept feeling that emotion as South Africa showed that they could host a mega sports event.
Hartley says this “it” can probably be defined as patriotism. “True patriotism is very different to nationalism. It is closer to the notion of civic duty, the desire to do something to make your country a better place and to celebrate others who make the same effort.”
He says we should now find new outlets for this patriotism. “In this scenario, we would treat our major civic challenges – such as the delivery of houses, health, safety and education – in the same way we treated the World Cup.”
But our patriotism should not turn us into a “nation of spin doctors” that do not want to give criticism where it is due. After all, criticism can help you to recognise your weaknesses and improve on them.
Patriotism should also not turn into an ugly nationalism involving xenophobia, David Smith writes in the Mail & Guardian.
Olympic Games?
Should South Africa bid to host the Olympics? Image: Patrick Hoesley via Flickr
Some have suggested that South Africa bidding to host the Olympic Games next would be a way to keep the “high” produced by the World Cup going. But Danny Jordaan, chief organiser of the Soccer World Cup is quoted in the Mail & Guardian as saying: “There is a sense of pride and achievement. We’ll have to see how we will ensure that pride is not the pride of 90 minutes in a World Cup but a permanent feature. Some people say find it in the hosting of the Olympics, find it another big event. I think we must find it in addressing some of the issues — housing, health, education, economic growth. We have to come together to deal with some of these issues.”
A renewed focus on development issues within the country, with renewed vigour and passion would be wonderful. It is something that Creative Consulting & Development Works, as a research, evaluation and communications consultancy working in the development sector definitely supports.
A lot of very interesting reads can be found on the Human Science Research Council’s (HSRC) press website- many of which can be partially downloaded for free!
Click here to browse the numerous publications. You are able to browse the HSRC publications by category or discipline of interest.
The website homepage has an extensive list of categories, for example: Development Studies, Education, Gender Studies, and so forth. Titles relevant to your particular discipline of interest are grouped under the respective category. This category grouping is valuable in terms of providing the reader with the current research trends and findings within the chosen discipline.
Development and Dreams (2009) is one title which may be particularly relevant to organisations working within the development sector. This book, about the increased role that sport is playing in development, is important in the context of South Africa hosting the 2010 FIFA World Cup™.
The prevalent use of sport as a medium for development is demonstrated in a recent evaluation of the South African based Stars in their Eyes Project, conducted by Development Works. The project is a joint initiative between the Department of Cultural Affairs and Sport and the Netherlands Stars in their Eyes Project. The project is conceptualised upon the model of using sport to drive sustainable community development.
Children from Hout Bay are kept off the streets with soccer, in the Stars in their Eyes project.
Ironically, even though South Africa will be hosting the 2010 Fifa World Cup in less than a year, physical education is deprioritised in schools across the country. The benefits of sport for one’s well-being are disregarded.
This was the opinion of guests at a colloquium hosted by the Social Transformation Programme of the Department of the Premier, on Thursday the 25June. The goal of the colloquium was to address the issue of how sport could contribute to social transformation.
The colloquium consisted firstly of a panelist discussion, where key stakeholders and academics working within the arena of sport and transformation put forward their views on sport as a mechanism for social transformation. Both the achievements and challenges at a policy level and grassroots level were raised.
Following the panelist discussion the floor was opened to the guests for comments. The floor’s diverse composition made for an insightful discussion. An interesting point to arise from the discussion is the fact that physical education is no longer included in the South African school curriculum.
Sport has many benefits and should be practised in schools.
Luckily, with South Africa’s responsibility as host of the 2010 Fifa World Cup, sport has been pushed up the priority list, for example with the Stars in their Eyes project that aims to uplift children in priority areas through soccer. However, sport needs to be prioritised even more. South Africa’s hosting of the 2010 Fifa World Cup should be used to put sport back into schools.
While doing an evaluation of the Stars in their Eyes project, Development Works explored the many benefits that sport has for children. It does not only keep them physically healthy, but also keeps them from the streets, gangs and drugs, builds their self-esteem and teaches them to work hard within a team. This is very necessary.
Creative Consulting & Development Works is a research, evaluation and communications consultancy, servicing nonprofits, government and funders with innovative solutions in a development context.
On our blog, Development Talks, we discuss politics and social development. We are interested in the impact of politics on the ordinary citizen and the political activities of those on the ground.
