South African programme for farm animal breeding and reproduction technology

7 December 2012. Brussels. The South African Mission to the European Union organised a lunch info session for a presentation by Mrs Ravini Moodley, Agri-Biotech Sector Portfolio Manager at Technology Innovation Agency, about the South African programmes for agriculture and biotechnology innovation, especially for farm animal breeding and reproduction technology.

Mrs Ravini Moodley is a Small Enterprise Development Researcher with the Technology Innovation Agency in Pretoria, South Africa.The Technology Innovation Agency (TIA) was established in 2008.

TIA’s core business objective is to support the development and commercialisation of competitive technology-based services and products. The Agency primarily uses South Africa’s science and technology base to develop new industries, create sustainable jobs and help diversify the economy. It invests in the following technology sectors: Advanced Manufacturing, Agriculture, Industrial Biotechnology, Health, Mining, Energy and ICT.

TIA was formed through merging seven DST entities previously tasked with supporting and promoting innovation in the country. These entities included the Innovation Fund, Tshumisano Trust, Cape Biotech Trust, PlantBio Trust, LIFElab, BioPAD Trust, and the Advanced Manufacturing Technology Strategy (AMTS).

In a bid to revitalise the animal vaccine development and manufacturing in South Africa, which is crippled by insufficient funding and the lack of co-ordination between agricultural research institutions, the Technology Innovation Agency (TIA) established the Tshwane Animal Health Cluster to improve services for livestock farming and agribusiness.

The initiative is a result of the outcry by livestock farmers and the value chain industry in South Africa that has been crippled by the country’s failure to prevent the spread of viral outbreaks that have lost the country billions of rands following the suspension of trade in sectors, such as beef, due to foot and mouth diseases, and ostrich meat, hides and feathers due to avian flu.