Professor Romain Murenzi executive director TWAS - World Academy of Sciences
The awards recognise excellence and achievement in international scientific co-operation and science, technology and innovation partnerships.
The awards were divided into the following categories:
– International STI partnership that has made an outstanding contribution to advancing global sustainable development;
– International STI partnership that has made an outstanding contribution to human capital development, especially for young and women scientists;
– International STI partnership that has made an outstanding contribution to international peace, understanding and solidarity;
– International STI partnership that has made an outstanding contribution to advancing African regional co-operation, integration and development
– International STI partnership that has made an outstanding contribution to harnessing scientific advice for multilateral decision-making;
– International STI partnership which has achieved excellence in global science; and
– Recognition of an individual effort over a career to put science at the service of fostering international friendship.
The recipients were as follows:
1) International STI partnership that has made an outstanding contribution to advancing global sustainable development.
Recipient: Group on Earth Observations (GEO)
The GEO is a voluntary international partnership of 96 governments and 87 organisations that have worked together since 2003 to harness Earth observation as a tool to inform policy- and decision-making. The GEO is developing a comprehensive Global Earth Observation System of Systems, which will enhance international co-ordination and co-operation in Earth observation across several societal benefit areas. South Africa has been a co-chair of the GEO since 2003.
2) International STI partnership that has made an outstanding contribution to human capital development, especially for young and women scientists.
Recipient: European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP)
The EDCTP is a partnership between Europe and sub-Saharan Africa aimed at building capacity to undertake clinical trials in Africa in the fight against both major and neglected infectious diseases. The EDCTP fosters career development of individual junior and senior fellows from sub-Saharan Africa, supporting training and mentorship of researchers, and promoting mobility of individual researchers and research staff. South Africa has been the host of the EDCTP Africa Office since 2004 and is participating in numerous EDCTP programmes.
3) International STI partnership that has made an outstanding contribution to international peace, understanding and solidarity.
Recipient: Science and Technology in Society (STS) Forum (Japan)
The STS Forum has since 2004 been one of the pre-eminent international forums for promoting global dialogue on the role of science and technology in society. It seeks to provide a platform for discussing in an open and constructive setting ethical, safety and environmental issues related to science and technology. The forum also seeks to build consensus on harnessing international co-operation in science and technology for global sustainable development. South Africa and its minister of science and technology have participated actively in and benefited from the STS Forum.
4) International STI partnership that has made an outstanding contribution to advancing African regional co-operation, integration and development.
Recipient: The African Very Long Baseline Interferometry Network (VLBI) consortium and the Regional Universities Forum for Capacity-Building in Africa (RUFORUM)
The African VLBI consortium brings together South Africa and eight African partner countries to develop radio astronomy co-operation initiatives, with the long-term objective of preparing to host components of the SKA global radio telescope. Developed in preparation of the countries’ participation in the SKA project, the consortium will be an African network of radio telescopes comprising either reconfigured satellite communication or new build dishes. In addition to accelerating human capital development for radio astronomy in Africa, the consortium has developed a well-established governance framework for radio astronomy in Africa, unique in African frontier research.
RUFORUM, established by 10 vice-chancellors in 2004, is a consortium of 55 African universities operating in 22 countries. It has achieved significant success in supporting postgraduate training and networks of specialisation, especially in the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa. In 2014 four South African universities were admitted to the network. RUFORUM has been instrumental in promoting regional integration and co-operation in agricultural research in support of regional development strategies.
5) International STI partnership that has made an outstanding contribution to harnessing scientific advice for multilateral decision-making.
Recipient: International Council for Science (ICSU)
The ICSU is a foremost international nongovernmental organisation, which seeks to provide a platform for the advancement and co-ordination of the global scientific community, bringing together national scientific bodies and international scientific unions. It has a specific focus on scientific policy, ensuring that science is integrated into international policy development, a role that is recognised by the United Nations and its various subsidiary bodies, particularly in regard to the development of the Sustainable Development Goals and multilateral negotiations on climate change. The South African scientific community contributes actively to the work of ICSU and is the host of the ICSU regional office for sub-Saharan Africa through the National Research Foundation (NRF).
6) International STI partnership that has achieved excellence in global science.
Recipient: International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA)
Founded in 1972, IIASA is an international scientific institute that conducts policy-oriented research into problems that are too large or too complex to be solved by a single country or academic discipline, such as climate change. It has gained global recognition for its work in finding solutions to global and universal problems through applied systems analysis in order to improve human and social wellbeing and protect the environment. South Africa through the NRF participates actively in the work of IIASA, notably in the training of young researchers.
(7) Recognition of an individual effort over a career to put science at the service of fostering international friendship
Dr Khotso Mokhele, Dr Bernie Fanaroff and Dr Lindiwe Sibanda
Dr Mokhele was the first president of the NRF and played a leading part in developing many of democratic South Africa’s international research co-operation programmes. He was largely responsible for the successful construction of the Southern African Large Telescope and South Africa’s bid to host the SKA global radio telescope. He has also held senior leadership positions in structures of both the International Council for Science and UNESCO, where he served with distinction.
Dr Fanaroff as the project director of SKA South Africa has through his scientific career contributed significantly to international partnerships within the domain of radio astronomy. He was a major player in not only South Africa’s bid to host the SKA global radio telescope, but also played a critical role as director of the SKA Organisation in building the international SKA partnership, including Australia as co-host of the telescope.
He has also initiated an Africa Big Data programme to ensure African development benefits optimally from the continent’s engagement with radio astronomy.
Dr Sibanda is the chief executive of the Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources Policy Analysis Network (FANRPAN), a multi-stakeholder, multi-national policy network that supports the development and implementation of better food, agriculture and national resources policies in Africa. She has worked tirelessly to assemble through FANRPAN an international membership of universities, research institutes, the business sector, farmer groups and other civil society organisations. Throughout her career she has successfully built international partnerships in agricultural research for sustainable development.