From left: Prof Robin Crewe (ASSAf), Prof Jacob Palis (TWAS), Prof Mohamed Hassan (TWAS), President Jacob Zuma (RSA), and Minister Naledi Pandor (DST).

The Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf) hosted an International Conference of the Academy of Sciences for the Developing World (TWAS) from 18 – 23 October 2009 at the Durban International Convention Centre. The conference was attended by 452 participants from 63 countries in the developing world.

These participants included TWAS Fellows, TWAS Young Affiliates, DST senior officials, representatives from other government departments, Presidents of Science Councils in South Africa, Presidents of African science academies, and university representatives. The conference was also attended by the Ministers of Science and Technology of South Africa, Brazil, and India, other high ranking technical advisers of various governments in the developing and developed world, and representatives of Indian, Chinese, and Brazilian diplomatic missions in South Africa.

The recently held TWAS Conference brought with it numerous spin-offs for both the Academy and South African scientific community. ASSAf published a book on The State of Science in South Africa to mark the occasion of the hosting of the conference. The book reflects on the state of science in South Africa; considers the historical context and the key features that have shaped scientific research in the country and are determining its current trajectories; highlights some of the future challenges and opportunities; and celebrates some of the achievements of South African scientists.

The establishment of a TWAS National Chapter (NC) in South Africa was also announced at the conference. ASSAf will provide the secretariat for the NC and the Chapter will operate in virtual mode with minimal bureaucracy. ASSAf will play a predominantly coordination and dissemination role, and will provide an opportunity, inter alia, for networking and announcement of TWAS fellowships.

The hosting of this conference also provided the ideal platform to announce the establishment of a National Chapter of the Third World Organisation for Women in Science (TWOWS). There are currently 76 full members of TWOWS in South Africa, some of whom are also Members of ASSAf. With the establishment of a TWOWS National Chapter, it is planned to initiate activities that will accord strongly with South Africa’s S&T policy of increasing the participation of women in science.

During the annual conference, 36 new TWAS members were inducted, including South Africans Thokozani Majozi and Bernard Slippers as TWAS Young Affiliates. Salim Abdool Karim and Wieland Gevers were awarded the TWAS prize and medal respectively during the 2009 TWAS conference. Anna Coutsoudis, Anusuya Chinsamy-Turan, Brenda Diana Wingfield, Brian Warner, Rashid Mekki Hassan, Robin Crewe, Salim Abdool Karim, and Tebello Nyokong, who are members of ASSAf, were elected as TWAS fellows during the conference, bringing the total number of TWAS fellows in South Africa to 19.

A Presidential medal was presented to the South African President, Mr. Jacob Zuma, by Profs. Robin Crewe (ASSAf President), Jacob Palis (TWAS President), and Mohamed Hassan (TWAS Executive Director) in Cape Town on 22 October 2009 in the presence of Minister Naledi Pandor. This gesture profiled both the academy and the importance of science and technology in the development of countries in the South in the Presidency.

http://www.livestream.com/twasconference2009

The Minister of S&T, the honourable Naledi Pandor, will participate in a symposium on the “Impact of the Global Financial Crisis on Research and Education in Developing Countries” together with her counterpart Ministers from India, Brazil and China.

Other symposia in which South Africa will feature strongly are those on “Astronomy in Developing Countries” and “S&T Education for Development”. The programme features a large number of invited presentations from distinguished scientists such as Michael Atiyah whose lecture is titled “Truth and beauty in mathematics and physics”, as well David Block and Monty Jones. The presence of a large number of eminent scholars in the country has prompted the DST through the South African Agency for Science and Technology Advancement  (SAASTA) to mount  a “Meet the Scientists” initiative which will connect TWAS fellows with teachers and learners in three KwaZulu-Natal centres in an attempt to promote science and careers in science amongst Grade 11 learners.  

ASSAf is proud to be hosting this prestigious conference, which is being held for the first time in South Africa, thanks to the generous support of the DST and the Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung (BMBF), the German Federal Ministry of Education and  Research.

TWAS is an autonomous international organisation, founded in 1983 in Trieste, Italy, by a distinguished group of scientists from the South under the leadership of the late Nobel Laureate Abdus Salam of Pakistan. Its mission is to promote scientific excellence and capacity in the South for the purposes of advancing sustainable development. TWAS operates under the administrative umbrella of UNESCO and receives generous core funding from the Italian government. Presently it has more than 900 members from 100 countries. Nearly 85% of its members live and work in developing countries.

TWAS also hosts and works closely with a number of Trieste-based international organisations that share the Academy’s broad-ranging objectives. These organisations include: Third World Organisation for Women in Science (TWOWS), InterAcademy Panel on International Issues, (IAP), InterAcademy Medical Panel (IAMP) and the Consortium on Science, Technology and Innovation for the South (COSTIS).

Want to read more?

Check out Daniel Schaffer’s articles on the TWAS website (www.twas.org) on Science and Change in South Africa, and an interview with Minister Pandor on Science.

This year’s science week was launched in the Northern Cape province by DST Minister, Naledi Pandor. Through ASSAf’s regional mentorship lecture approach, which targeted both learners and educators, scientist were able to interact with learners, provide guidance on science-based careers, and understand some of the challenges that are facing educators within the science system in South Africa. This also provided an opportunity to increase the awareness of ASSAf among learners, educators, and other key stakeholders.