TIA board appointed

Johannesburg, 21 Apr 2009

The Technology Innovation Agency (TIA) has appointed its board, which will be chaired by Dr Mamphele Ramphele.

The executive also approved the appointments of Helen Brown, Cheryl Carolus, Dr Steven Cornelius, Prof Susan Harrison, Alan Lax, Dr Nhlanhla Msomi, Dr Patrick Ngwenya, Ross Norton and Craig Venter as the remaining board members.

The Department of Science and Technology (DST) says it has taken other commitments of board members into consideration. All members were selected on “the basis of their combined understanding of the national system of innovation, as well as their expertise in technological innovation, finance, business development and corporate governance”, it notes.

The TIA is being established under the Technology Innovation Agency Bill, which was signed into law by the president in November 2008. This legislation forms part of the department's 10-year innovation plan to promote innovation through funding, support and commercialisation. The objective of the agency is to support SA in stimulating technological innovation in order to improve economic growth.

Opposition

While the appointment of Ramphele as chairperson was unopposed, some questions were raised about other board members. Representatives of the Democratic Alliance (DA) raised concerns on the appointment of Cornelius and Venter. Cornelius is the head of the Department for Agriculture in Gauteng, while Venter is CEO of Altech.

While the DST previously stated it would include individuals from within the department, the DA said the appointment of Cornelius could lead to interference. Venter's appointment was cited as a conflict of interest, due to his close links with local and international businesses. However, any opposition to the appointment of the two candidates was waived and their appointments were finalised.

The DST further stated the composition and functions of the board had been looked at, and the board would be independent and rely on certain mechanisms to keep the department informed about the running of the agency.

Credentials

Last year, the DST announced the TIA would be functional by July and called for nominations for board members. A panel was appointed and tasked with compiling a shortlist of potential candidates. The minister, in consultation with the National Assembly, then appointed the board according to members' academic achievements, skills and experience.

Ramphele was ranked highest by the selection committee. She is the previous vice-chancellor of the University of Cape Town and former MD of the World Bank. Carolus is an executive chairperson of Peotona and was appointed as SA high commissioner to London in 1998. Lax is an attorney at Alan Lax Attorneys, while Norton is MD and chairman of SA Bioproducts.

Brown is a senior project manager at Merseta and sits on the board of the Tshumisano Trust, while Harrison is a professor with the department of chemical engineering at the University of Cape Town. Ngwenya is director of CKS investments Unisys Africa and former chairman of the Nuclear Energy Corporation.