Academy of Science South Africa 2005/6 Annual Report

Programme 3ASSAfSubmission of the Council-approved documentation to the USNA officials was followed by approvalof the ASSAf “Year One” Workplan by the Board for ASADI, followed by transmission of the first trancheof the funding on 4 July 2006, effectively initiating the project.Programmatic activities designed to build the Academy’s capacity to provideindependent and authoritative consensus advice, based on the best availableevidence, professionally generated, reported and disseminatedStudy-topic selection from within the AcademyASSAf members were invited to propose study topics that in their view represented serious problemsfacing the nation and that might be amenable to evidence-based analysis and the generation of consensusrecommendations to government and other agencies in South Africa.The Council decided to “fast-track” a number of the proposals received, and suggested in each casethat the topic could best be approached as either a “consensus study” to be undertaken by an appointedexpert panel, or a “convened, forum-type study” to be addressed through/at consultative meetings ofappropriate persons representing different points of view or sectoral interests.The ASSAf Council provisionally selected a number of study topics to be further developed to fullproposals as soon as possible, according to the approved guidelines for proposals of science-based(evidence-based) topics to be examined by ASSAf in the national interest:Year One: Consensus Study: Nutritional influences on the human immune system(Proposers: Prof W Gevers (MASSAf) and Prof J Volmink (MASSAf))Convened Study: Health-professional personpower for the HIV-AIDS era in South Africa(Proposer: Prof S Benatar (MASSAf))Consensus Study: Review of South Africa’s National Biotechnology Programme(Proposers: Prof R Crewe (MASSAf) and Dr R Adam (MASSAf))Image: Quest – Science for South AfricaAnnual Report 2005/0635