Department of Science and Innovation - Revised 2020 - 2025 Strategic Plan.

The Revised 2020–2025 Strategic Plan is a multisectoral framework designed to drive South Africa’s sustainable and inclusive development through science, technology, and innovation (STI). These fields hold immense transformative potential, particularly for developing countries, where innovation can fuel economic growth, create jobs, improve livelihoods at the grassroots level, and enhance government efficiency and service delivery. However, in South Africa, innovation must be strategically aligned with the triple challenge of poverty, inequality, and unemployment (PIU). To maximize its impact, targeted interventions are essential to scale up innovation-driven solutions that improve citizens' quality of life. Innovation is expected to play a transformative role by (i) modernizing key economic sectors—agriculture, mining, and manufacturing—by enhancing competitiveness, improving productivity, and ultimately increasing their contribution to GDP; (ii) leveraging emerging innovation concepts, such as the circular and digital economy, as new drivers of economic growth; (iii) utilizing the capabilities developed by the National System of Innovation (NSI) to foster innovation across multiple sectors, including health and energy, to support the development of a capable and entrepreneurial state. This Plan incorporates a range of institutional policies and strategies to address these challenges effectively. As part of the 2019–2024 Medium-Term Strategic Framework, the Department prioritizes two key focus areas and their associated outcomes over the medium term (i) Economic Transformation and Job Creation: enhancing competitiveness through ICT adoption and strategic investments to accelerate inclusive economic growth; (ii) Education, Skills, and Health: expanding access to quality post-school education and training (PSET), improving student success rates, and strengthening overall education outcomes.
The Strategic Plan includes also the Science, Technology and Innovation Decadal Plan (2021) which identifies the following three Societal grand challenges (SGCs) that capture the core domains for STI priorities and associated interventions (1) climate change and environmental sustainability; (2) future proof education and skills; (3) a secure, safe and equitable society. The Decadal Plan has three mutually reinforcing aims, namely (1) pivoting the NSI towards making an increased positive impact on national socio-economic and environmental priorities; (2) maintaining equilibrium between a focus on impact (e.g. inclusive innovation); (3) continued investment to develop the system and transformative role of innovation.
The 2020–2025 Strategic Plan also aligns with the 2019 White Paper on Science, Technology, and Innovation (STI) objectives, focusing on impactful and transformative initiatives over the medium term. It seeks to strengthen South Africa’s National System of Innovation (NSI) by fostering collaboration among government, business, academia, and civil society while ensuring an enabling environment for innovation. To achieve this, the Department has identified six key outcomes (1) a transformed, inclusive, and coherent NSI that enhances coordination and institutional strength; (2) the development of human capabilities and skills to drive economic growth and national development; (3) increased knowledge generation and innovation output to support research excellence and industry needs; (4) effective knowledge utilization for economic growth, focusing on revitalizing existing industries and fostering R&D-led industrial development; (5) knowledge-driven inclusive development that broadens access to STI benefits; (6) innovation in support of a capable and developmental state, reinforcing governance and service delivery. These outcomes directly support the National Development Plan (NDP) pillars: building a strong and inclusive economy, enhancing South Africa’s human capital, and strengthening state capacity.