January / February 2005 - CSIR

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22National Accessibility Portalproject gains momentumA significant milestone was reachedwhen the National AccessibilityPortal (NAP) (a collaborative projectbetween the CSIR, a representativegroup of Disabled Persons’Organisations, and the Office on theStatus of Disabled Persons in thePresidency) was demonstrated inNovember 2004. Dr Essop Pahad,Minister in the Presidency reconfirmedthe support of the Presidencyfor the NAP demonstrator.NAP is a five-year research andinnovation project aimed at addressingthe marginalisation of peoplewith disabilities from the mainstreameconomy and society. Theproject aims to improve the qualityof life of people with disabilitiesirrespective of age, gender, language,or literacy. Existing devicesand software that allow people withdisabilities to interact with informationand communications technology(ICT) systems are prohibitivelyexpensive and have not beendesigned with the South Africancontext in mind.The NAP team with Dr Essop Pahad: From left, front row: Mackeed Masemola, SebenzileMatsebula and Martin Pistorius. Second row: Johan Viljoen, Buhle Mkhize, Hina Patel,Ronell Alberts, Maluta Mulibana, Anthea Botes, Ngwanakopi Ramushu, Kagiso Chikane.Third row: Dr Louis Coetzee, Laurens Cloete, Dr Essop Pahad, Doreen Letchman, Prof EAlant, Ennio Macagnano, Riette Easton, Rosalie de Villiers, Eric Rossouw, Ilse Viviers andElaine Olivier.Technical challenges that are beingtackled include research and developmentin text-to-sign-language,support for South African languagesand development of quality opensource technologies. A robust textto-speechscreen reader is beingdeveloped in order to make servicesaccessible in an affordable way.Sustainability will be addressedthrough implementation of organisationaland business models thateffectively support and promote economicempowerment of people withdisabilities.Discussions are currently underwaywith the Limpopo ProvincialGovernment regarding the pilotrollout of the system. Subsequentphases will include national rollout.Enquiries:Hina PatelTel: +27 12 841 3777Fax: +27 12 841 4720Email: hpatel@csir.co.zaCSIR organises firstFLOSS developer roadshowThe first Free/Libre Open Source Software (FLOSS) Developer RoadshowAfrica took place at the University of the Western Cape in Cape Town inDecember 2004. The roadshow is a series of one-week sessions funded by theOpen Source Initiative (OSI)/Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa (OSISA)and convened by the CSIR. The event involved software developers in selectedAfrican countries and focused on the theme of localisation and education(e.g. localising an e-learning environment, FLOSS for education and othertopics). For more information on future Developer Roadshows, seehttp://eduforge.org/wiki/wiki/devroadafr/Photograph: courtesy of Neil Blakey-Milner
23Farewell to Executive Vice-PresidentsThe CSIR bids farewell to two Executive Vice-Presidents, Tina Eboka and Dr AnthosYannakou. Both had a sustained commitment to the CSIR and leave behind a legacyof excellence in their various leadership areas.Dr AnthosYannakou,outgoing CSIRExecutive Vice-PresidentOperationsDr Anthos Yannakou left the CSIR on1 December 2004 after 11 years at the organisation.During this time, he served as Director of the formerCSIR Food Technology and subsequently as Director ofCSIR Water, Environment and Forestry Technology.In 1998, Yannakou was appointed as Executive Vice-President: Business Development and TechnologyManagement, and became a member of the ExecutiveBoard. In 2002 his portfolio changed to Operations,which included Business Development, TechnologyManagement, Technology for Development and all theCSIR operational issues at business unit and servicedepartment levels.Yannakou serves on a host of advisory boards andreview panels and was the director of several local andinternational boards including the African Centre forGene Technology, the Global Research Alliance, theMerensky Trust, and the Sugar Milling ResearchInstitute. During his career, he managed a wide rangeof functions, including marketing and business development,technical (R&D, quality, project management,factory management), strategic and business planning,operations, and general management. His experiencespans working in academia, the private and publicsectors, to local and multinational organisations. He iswidely published on change management, strategy,and the management of technology.Tina Eboka worked at the CSIRfor seven years, during which timeshe made an invaluable contribution,starting at CSIR Textile Technology inPort Elizabeth in 1997, then at CSIRWater, Environment and ForestryTechnology in 2000, and in 2002, as ExecutiveTina Eboka,outgoingExecutiveVice-PresidentHumanResources andOrganisationalDevelopmentVice-President: Organisational Development andCommunications and a member of the ExecutiveBoard. Here she led the organisation in the areasof human resources and employee well-being, andinternal and external communication. She alsospearheaded the CSIR NEPAD forum, Technologyfor Women in Business and the CSIR SustainableDevelopment Liaison Committee.In addition to her portfolio, she fulfilled her dutiesas board member of a number of organisations,including the UNISA School of BusinessLeadership, the Western Cape Community Chestand the Philadelphia College of Textiles andScience. She has been a recipient of numerousawards in recognition of her leadership skills andhas working experience in the textile industry, privatesector and academic institutions.
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Page 3 and 4: 3From leftto right,Dr SibusisoSibis
Page 5 and 6: 5New nanodrugcarrier to targetTB su
Page 7 and 8: 7Lighting the futureResearch into t
Page 9 and 10: 9SOLAR CELLSA SOLUTION TO THE ENERG
Page 11 and 12: 11Measurement technologiesto suppor
Page 13 and 14: 13CHARACTERISINGDIETARY FIBREWITH N
Page 15 and 16: 15Wonder crop could pave the wayfor
Page 17 and 18: Celebrating100 yearsof safe minehoi
Page 19 and 20: 19NPDC designsprominentawardThe CSI
Page 21: CSIRboosts youthdevelopmentprogramm

January / February 2005 - CSIR

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