Science for change – A word from the WRC CEO  

There is a demand worldwide for a quicker realisation of the benefits of science and research to the real economy. 

This demand is increasing exponentially in the wake of the many new challenges that we face globally. These range from climate change to reduced resource availability to an increasing global population to the global economic downturn. Society wants a quick return on its scientific investment.

The same is true in South Africa, and there have been several interventions to enable this realisation. This includes the development of a new Innovation Policy supported by a new law governing intellectual property from publicly funded research as well as the establishment of a public agency to support these endeavours in the form of the Technology Innovation Agency.

The WRC in its new five-year strategy is building on a forty-year legacy of addressing this challenge.  The Commission’s goal is to provide new and innovative solutions to address the challenges of the South African water sector through research and development. The WRC has already developed a strong track record in this domain in all areas of its operation. There are several examples in the agricultural, ecosystem, industrial, urban water and governance areas.

The WRC in the next five years will with its various partners continue and accelerate the efforts to take advantage of the various opportunities and address the many water challenges in South Africa to elevate water to realising the important goal of water being a tool for development, empowerment and growth in a sustainable development paradigm.

Contact: Dhesigen Naidoo, WRC CEO dhesn@wrc.org.za