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Official opening Of the South African Centre For Epidiomological Modelling Analysis (SACEMA) by Deputy Minister Derek Hanekom
2006-05-18 13:35
Mostertsdrift Premises of the University of Stellenbosch
Deputy Minister
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Official Opening Of The South African Centre For Epidiomological Modelling Analysis (SACEMA) By The Deputy Minister Of Science And Technology, Derek Hanekom 18 May 2006 Venue: Mostertsdrift Premises of the University of Stellenbosch Programme Director: Dr. Phil Mjwara, Professor Brink; SACEMA Director, Professor John Hargrove; Chair of the SACEMA Trust, Professor Ekkerhard Kopp; SACEMA Board members; Distinguished Guests; Ladies and Gentlemen, The well known mathematician Norbert Wiener was a very absent-minded man - to the extent that when he and his family moved from Cambridge to Newton, his wife, knowing that he would just be in the way on moving day, packed him off to his office whilst she directed the move. Since she was certain that he would forget that they had moved and where they had moved to, she wrote the new address on a piece of paper and gave it to him. During the course of the day, a thought occurred to him whereupon he reached into his pocket, found a piece of paper and furiously scribbled some notes on it. Later, he decided there was a flaw in his idea, and threw the piece of paper away. At the end of the day he went home – needless to say to his old address in Cambridge. When he got there he remembered that they had moved, but had no idea where to. And the piece of paper with the address was long gone. But he was not without inspiration. Seeing a young girl in the street he asked her where he had moved to: "Excuse me,” he said, “perhaps you know me. We’ve just moved. Would you know where we’ve moved to?" The young girl replied, "Yes Daddy, Mommy thought you would forget." In that spirit, I hope everyone remembers exactly why we are here today, and more importantly, what we are going to do for science and technology in South Africa tomorrow! The establishment of a centre of research and learning on the modeling and analysis of epidemiological data and phenomena in South Africa is a seminal event - one that I am extremely proud to be associated with. I am also proud that the Department of Science and Technology initiated this process and, together with the National Research Foundation, has ensured that it develops in a coherent way alongside our other six Centres of Excellence. The study of the patterns of disease progression in populations, and within hosts, is extremely important to our continent. The outcome of this work is key to the formulation of effective health policy, health systems design, innovation and new research that will ultimately lead to the accomplishment of our goals of improved quality of life for all South Africans, as well millions of people across the continent. The focal point of the work in this Centre of Excellence will be the modelling of disease transmission and progression. I am particularly pleased to hear that the focus will be on the Southern African region and its major health challenges - HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis. The South African Centre for Epidemiological Modelling and Analysis - or SACEMA - is the product of both top-down and bottom-up planning and action. Its roots lie in our recognition that we do not know enough, or alternatively, that there is a lot more that we should know about disease transmission and progression. The Centre is therefore premised on the recognition that science must be relevant and targeted towards the development of our country and continent. SACEMA is no overnight phenomenon. According to my information, the idea was first mooted by Professor Brian Williams during a visit of the World Health Organisation about three years ago. Teaming up with Professors Wayne Getz (of Berkley) and Ekkehard Kopp (of Hull University) this idea was further developed and ultimately resulted in the establishment of SACEMA in 2004, with a R1million start-up grant from the DST. Professor Getz’s indefatigable energy - which by the way is also used in the service of the African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS) - linked us to Prof. Ekkehard Kopp and Prof. Fritz Hahne, who played a key role in providing an institutional base for SACEMA through the AIMS as well as generous amounts of wise counsel. Professor Kopp used a large chunk of an extended sabbatical from the University of Hull to be the architect and builder of the consensus that is realized today as SACEMA. Without his efforts SACEMA would not have come into being. The role of government is to facilitate the generation, adoption and diffusion of knowledge in the economy through appropriate public funding mechanisms, the provision of public incentives and the creation the most effective institutional frameworks to enhance networking and cooperation. The outstanding work done by the Centres of Excellence have demonstrated the value of using public funds to achieve effective networking and cooperation. The DST is actively and continuously formulating and implementing strategies and programmes aimed at renewing and strengthening scientific knowledge production and the development of human capital, together with the ongoing rationalization and strengthening of our science system. Centres of Excellence are meant to respond to these challenges by generating high quality, targeted research – and in this way contribute to the knowledge imperative that drives modern economies. The programme is designed to ensure that the outputs of scientific research are appropriately deployed for human development and to promote research excellence across the African continent. In my visits to the Centres of Excellence I have been greatly impressed by the energy displayed by researchers and students. SACEMA, in its establishment phase, has been supporting research projects and the development of young researchers and academics. This is exactly what we want all our Centres of Excellence to do. One of the cornerstones of South Africa’s long-term strategy is the effort to harness the full potential of science and technology through education. This requires well structured public awareness campaigns, as well as innovative ways of attracting young people to pursue and remain in science-related studies and careers. Our future prosperity, and that of the rest of the continent, is dependent on a solid science, engineering and technology (SET) base. The unfortunate reality is that our children are not being developed to their full potential; our educators do not have sufficient support to effectively fulfill their obligations, and consequently our scientific community is not being renewed at a rate adequate to ensure that our country stays at the cutting edge of scientific and technological discovery and innovation. It is therefore essential for us to prioritise human capital development in the science sector as a non-negotiable imperative. I would like to congratulate the SACEMA Board on their diligence and their role in bringing us to this day, and I would like to thank the University of Stellenbosch and the Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study for their hosting role in the formative period. The SACEMA programme committee has had a big influence on the work done to date, and they have had to balance already busy lives with careful attention to the formation of this new entity. Prof. Hargrove, as the first Director, you have our good wishes. We would not want to intimidate you at this early stage, but I’m sure you are aware that our expectations are high. On that note, it gives me great pleasure to formally declare SACEMA open and operational as the seventh DST/NRF Centre of Excellence. Its work in Epidemiological Modelling and Analysis is of critical national importance. I wish all of you great success in this valuable work you are doing. Thank you. |
President Jacob Zuma congratulates South African scientists
