address by the kwazulu-natal mec for economic development and ...

ADDRESS BY THE KWAZULU-NATAL MEC FOR ECONOMICDEVELOPMENT AND TOURISM, THE HONOURABLE MICHAELMABUYAKHULU ON THE OCCASION OF THE LAUNCH OF THEINNOVATION TECHNOLOGY BUSINESS INCUBATORPROGRAMME DIRECTOR;DIGNITARIES PRESENT;LADIES AND GENTLEMEN;ALL PROTOCOL OBSERVED.23 AUGUST 2011On behalf of the government of KwaZulu-Natal we wish to express our sincere delight atbeing part of this auspicious occasion where we are meeting to launch an initiative whichwill ensure that technological development becomes one of the critical pillars of oureconomic development in the province.From the outset, Programme Director, we want to extend an apology on behalf of ourMEC, Mr Michael Mabuyakhulu who wanted to be with us today to witness the launch ofthis innovation technology business incubator but could not honour this invitationbecause of other pressing engagements. However, even though he is not with us today,we have no doubt that in future he will take time off to come and see this wonderful workbecause this is a subject that is very close to his heart.As the government of KwaZulu-Natal we want to applaud this bold step which has beentaken by the Durban University of Technology to build a centre of this nature. We haveno doubt that this facility will go a long way towards providing our buddingentrepreneurs with the opportunities to realize their potential and ensure that they arecompetitive enough in the global market.

Programme Director, as government we have always believed that the challenges facingour country cannot be resolved by government working alone. It is because of this reasonthat we have made a clarion call to all stakeholders in our society to work in tandem withus in our quest to create a society in which all of us can have a stake. In this regard,institutions of higher learning as producers of knowledge have a big role to play.While having said this, Programme Director, we want to also state it without any fear ofcontradiction that while universities need to play a critical role to produce knowledgeableand highly skilled citizens, it is critical that such knowledge and skills should be linked tothe needs of that particular society. In other words, universities, because they have aninterest in the failure and the success of the society in which they operate, can ill afford towork out of sync with the national objectives.We all know that in our society some of the pressing challenges of our times are thetriplets of poverty, unemployment and inequality. Therefore, it is our contention that in,in their programme of action, universities need to respond to these challenges.We are therefore heartened that DUT has grasp the nettle by starting this facility whichwe have no doubt that it will go a long way towards producing and nurturing a new breedof entrepreneurs who are at the cutting edge of technological innovation and high qualityproduction.Programme Director, it has been proven time and again that learning the robes inbusiness is a daunting task when you don’t have someone to hold your hand and showyou the intricacies of running a profitable business venture. Incubation has thereforebecome one of the critical areas of focus for economic and business development.This is even more pronounced when you are dealing with an economic field aschallenging as new technology. We therefore hope that other institutions of higherlearning will take a leaf out of the DUT’s book and start other similar facilities.

In June this year our Department of Economic Development and Tourism hosted whathas been described as a ground-breaking conference which looked at the issue ofentrepreurship and investment in our province of KwaZulu-Natal. We decided to host theconference because we understand that the challenges facing the world today mean thatwe need to be innovative in what ever we do.But more importantly, as the shaky global economic situation has shown, we can nolonger afford to be inward looking in whatever we do. One of the questions we posed atthe conference was how can our province, in the context of the vacillating globaleconomic conditions, position itself as an investment destination of choice while alsocreating a cadre of entrepreneurs who will be able to hold their own in the globaleconomic arena.Indeed, Programme Director, one of the key resolutions of the conference was that inorder to develop a culture of entrepreneurship in our province, we need to take a numberof practical steps.Key amongst these is the role that institutions of higher learning such as the DUT have toplay. In our view, we believe we need to take a conscious effort to ensure thatentrepreneurship development becomes a reality as opposed to the current piece mealapproach to this issue.We believe that entrepreneurship development should be part of the curricula of highereducation. We also believe that entrepreneurs who are innovative, able to graspopportunities and less reliant on government tenders should be encouraged andsupported.One of the greatest ironies about America today is that while its economy is on the skids,with the country having been downgraded by Standard and Poor however, it remains oneof the most innovative societies on earth as we speak.

It is the US which has given us the latest communication fad, known as social networkingwhich includes amongst others, Twitter and Facebook. But more importantly, it isinstructive to note that American brands such as Apple, Microsoft, Google are stillranked amongst the most valuable brands in the world.This testifies to the country’s indomitable entrepreneurial spirit, an attribute that we haveto emulate as a country and as a province if we are to place our province on the globaleconomic map. In order for our country to be able to compete in the rough and tumbleworld of globalization we need to create our own Mark Zuckerberg, the founder ofFacebook. We need to nurture a new cadre of entrepreneurs who will think locally but actglobally.But more importantly we need to invest in technologies that will drive innovation inbusiness. We also need to encourage universities to create platforms for knowledgesharing and identify and link organizations who are promoting innovation and creativity.In conclusion, we believe that our young people have been given a canvas to map out afuture of their dreams. The present economic crisis brought about by globalizationpresents a confluence of opportunities and challenges. It is up to us to seize theseopportunities and ensure that our province and indeed, our country are counted among thebest in the world. As Franz Fanon once said: each generation must discover its mission,fulfill it or betray it. Our greatest mission is to create a society that can compete with thebest in the world not only in the technological arena, but in all spheres of humanendevour. This is a mission that we cannot afford to betray.I thank you.