Collaborative research efforts between Norway and South Africa, through programmes such as Horizon 2020, which focuses on the promotion of research excellence in the fields of environment, climate change and renewable energy, have led to a number of successful initiatives.

Speaking to delegates at the South Africa–Norway Science Week, at the Innovation Hub, in Pretoria, Research Council of Norway (RCN) director-general Arvid Hallen said 38% of projects under the Horizon 2020 programme have been successful to date.

“This is truly impressive,” he stated.

However, he said there were still many areas where the two countries could collaborate. Noting that South Africa was already part of the global Water Joint Partnership Initiative (JPI), an intergovernmental collaboration aimed at tackling major societal challenges that cannot be addressed by individual countries, he called on South Africa to also join the Oceans JPI.

The Water JPI, titled ‘Water challenges for a changing world’, deals with research in the field of water and hydrological sciences, in light of now growing recognition that the “next element wars” will be fought over the availability of water in sufficient quantities and adequate quality, making it a public issue of high priority.

Hallen said the RCN was the Oceans JPI secretariat and that South Africa would benefit from its focus on ten strategic areas.

These include exploring deep sea resources; technology and sensor developments; science support to coastal and maritime planning and management; linking oceans, human health and wellbeing; research for good environmental status; observing, modelling and predicting oceans’ state and processes; climate change impact on physical and biological ocean processes; effects of ocean acidification on marine ecosystems; food security and safety driving innovation in a changing world; use of marine biological resources through development and application of biotechnology.

The strategies also overlap with many of South Africa’s Operation Phakisa’s oceans economy areas of focus.

Meanwhile, South Africans can also, for the first time, now apply to the European small-, medium-sized and microenterprise-driven Eurostars programme, which aims to support close-to-market innovative product research and development.