Prof. Malik Maaza provides an overview of the Photon Induced X-ray Emission (PIXE) unit to Lesley Tobin (Institute of Nanotechnology, United Kingdom) at iThemba LABS-NRF in Cape Town. The PIXE is described as exceptional because of its capacity to provide information about the content of chromium, iron or oxygen at the lowest level and, significantly, when the material is in a frozen state. Normally, the entry of an ion beam will heat material and cause decomposition of cells. The PIXE, however, prevents decomposition and the physiology of the material remains unaffected. Image accessed from Nanopaprika.eu
“An academic chair in nanoscience and nanotechnology is compulsory for any respected higher education institution striving to prepare the workforce of tomorrow and be a global actor within society.”
This is the opinion of Professor Malik Maaza, incumbent of the recently established UNESCO-UNISA Africa Chair in Nanosciences and Nanotechnology within the framework of the Nanosciences African Network (NANOAFNET).
The chair, starting in March 2013, in line with the South African Research Chairs Initiative (SARChI), comes at an opportune time as the university celebrates 140 years of shaping futures in Africa. But more than that, this year, the university also celebrates its future where it aims to be a leading global centre of excellence in science and research.
A trilateral partnership between UNESCO, Unisa and the iThemba LABS-National Research Foundation (NRF), the chair falls within the framework of the UNITWIN/UNESCO Chairs Programme, which provides “think tanks and bridge builders” between the academic world, civil society, local communities, research, and policy-making.
The chair is a milestone outcome of NANOAFNET, and key partners include, amongst others, the Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP), the Academy of Science for the Developing World (TWAS), the Organisation for Women in Science in the Developing World (OWSDW), the Science and Technology Directorate of the French Embassy, the NRF, and the US National Science Foundation.
Nanomedicine is the medical application of nanotechnology and ranges from the medical applications of nanomaterials, to nanoelectronic biosensors. Image accessed from wifinotes.com
Maaza says, from an African perspective, nanoscience and nanotechnology have been identified by the African Union Science and Technology Commission as well as the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa as a crucial and a key multidisciplinary driving force in the emerging economies.
“In view of its multi-disciplinarity, nanoscience and nanotechnology have a mandate to ensure development of cost-effective nanosolutions for numerous continental and national problems such as the strategic water sector, since several nations in Africa will face a serious scarcity in 2025.”
Likewise, says Maaza, very promising technologies in solar energy for applications in rural areas are being developed, such as the nano-crystalline dye solar cells where the core component is nano-titania, a mineral for which South Africa is a major mining producer, which will also provide minerals for the beauty industry in local add-value.
Maaza adds that, in the field of health, nanomedication is being proven more effective and less harmful. “For example, in the case of malaria, encapsulating the active ingredient in nanoreservoirs allows slow release of the drug in time and small amounts far from the toxicity threshold, therefore a better treatment.”
Bringing key actors together
Through nanoscience and nanotechnology, the development of cost-effective nanosolutions for numerous continental and national problems such as water shortages could be addressed. This graph indicates that several nations in Africa will face a serious water scarcity by 2025.
He explains that, as per the visions of the chair, Unisa, and the iThemba LABS-NRF, his role as the chair’s incumbent is to bridge interfacing between the various institutional, national and continental key actors in the nanoscience and nanotechnology field while providing a nanovoice for the partners in Africa and worldwide. He will travel frequently between Unisa in Pretoria and iThemba LABS-NRF in Cape Town.
The major aims of the chair, says Maaza, are to take advantage of the multidisciplinary singular aspect of the current wave of nanoscience and nanotechnology.
This will:
- Place Unisa in the pole position, nationally, continentally, and globally, in the ongoing revolution of nanosciences and nanotechnologies and enhance its MIT-Shanghai international ranking.
- Exploit the unique multi-disciplinarity of this multi-sectoral field of science and technology to create a cross-border synergy between various disciplines within Unisa, including sciences and humanities.
- Further Unisa’s partnership with highly profiled African higher education institutions via a reciprocal human capital development and a sustainable mobility platform of senior fellows towards Unisa.
“Being the first of its type on the continent in the field of nanoscience and nanotechnology, the chair’s core mission is subscribed within the framework of north-south and south-south cooperation with a focus on Africa,” says Maaza.
The chair is geared towards the following strategic programmes:
- Human capital development in Africa: Junior visiting scientists and postgraduate fellowship programme in nanoscience and nanotechnology within the continent
- Human capital mobility in Africa: Senior visiting scientists’ mobility programme in nanosciences and nanotechnology within the continent
- E-learning and e-scientific literature access in Africa
- International partnerships and access to large R&D facilities
- Entrepreneurship trainings in emerging technologies
UNESCO and Unisa will also be contributing significantly from a financial point of view during each of the chair’s five-year terms.
Nanoscience and BRICS
Since the industrial revolution in the 1800s, society has gone through successive economy-driven phases – the coal industry in the 1800s, the nuclear era in the 1960s, semiconductor technology in the 1970s, biotechnology in the 1980s, information and communication technologies in the 1990s, and now the nano era.
Therefore, says Maaza, the chair is also vital for the BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, China, India and South Africa), emphasising its impact on the development and sharing of knowledge, and economic growth.
“Through investment in science, technology and innovation (STI), nanoscience and nanotechnology have already boosted several emerging economies – China, India and Brazil – into the top ten of the STI landscape … China’s world contributions in publications in the field of nanoscience and nanotechnology were less than 10% in 2000 and this rocketed to 25% in 2009, surpassing the USA (21%). In terms of intellectual property (IP) and patenting, China is now second to the USA as it covers about one fifth of the global IP contributions.”
He adds that while there is an IBSA (India-Brazil-South Africa) nanoplatform, there is a need to extend this to other BRICS countries because of the “massive potential” of Russia’s STI capabilities. “Such a platform would stimulate a spirit of emulation in the STI sector within the BRICS member states and further their economy growth rate.”
 Prof. Malik Maaza (back) with some of his students Under the microscope: Prof. Malik MaazaWith about 20 years of experience in nanosciences, Algerian-born and South African by adoption, Malik Maaza is an ideal incumbent for the UNESCO-Unisa Africa Chair in Nanosciences and Nanotechnology. He has undergraduate degrees in Solid State Physics and Photonics from the University of Oran, Algeria, and University of Paris VI, France. His PhD in Neutron Optics was obtained from the University of Paris VI. He is a man passionate about voicing Africa’s nanoscience and nanotechnology knowledge production progress and contributions. Parallel to the initiation of the South African Nanotechnology Initiative (SANi) launched in 2006, which Maaza instigated with Dr Philemon Mjwara, current Director General of the national department of science and technology, in 2005, in Trieste-Italy, under the patronage of TWAS, ICTP and UNIDO, he initiated the Nanosciences African Network (NANOAFNET), which has its headquarters at the iThemba LABS-NRF in Cape Town. Since the inception of this African nano-platform, Maaza, together with several key actors from international funding agencies, implemented a concise and sustainable, continental programme in the field of nano where the human capital development and human capital mobility of senior scientists in Africa are the cornerstone components. Read more about Maaza: |
SANiThe UNESCO-Unisa Africa Chair in Nanosciences and Nanotechnology is in line with the South African Nanotechnology Initiative (SANi) launched and implemented in 2006 by Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Derek Hanekom.This strategy is supported by a strategic fund utilised for human resource and research capacity development as well as the commercialisation of nanotechnology innovation products. The budget for the successful implementation of the nanotechnology strategy for the first three years is estimated at R450 million. Six focus areas of SANi‘s strategy are driven by the needs and opportunities that can generate most benefits for South Africa:
Two key interventions identified are cross-cutting science and technology and frontier programmes (capacity building, research and innovation networks, flagship projects), as well as research and development infrastructure. In line with the strategy, two national nano-centres were created at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and Mintek Gauteng. There is an ongoing National Nanotechnology Equipment Programme (NNEP). In addition to these national efforts, the nanotechnology focus is constantly included in the bilateral and multilateral cooperation programmes. |
Additional reading:
Unisa files its first patent in nanotechnology.
* Written by Rivonia Naidu-Hoffmeester
