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19 March 2009

Programme director
Executive directors and event organisers
Distinguished guests and delegates
Ladies and gentlemen

Although South Africans have won four Nobel science prizes, only one of them has been for Chemistry. It was awarded in 1982 to Aaron Klug, later Sir Aaron Klug, for his work on crystallographic electron microscopy and his structural elucidation of biologically important nucleic acid-protein complexes, or simply, his depiction of the building blocks of life.
 
One of government's key responsibilities is to improve the well being of the nation through sustainable development. The 2001 National Biotechnology Strategy essentially outlines multiple opportunities for socio-economic returns through the country's strategic investment in various biotechnology capacities required to build a globally competitive bio-economy that can provide solutions to local and regional challenges such as malaria, HIV and AIDS, TB, food security and unemployment.

The implementation of the National Biotechnology Strategy has seen the establishment of the Biotechnology Innovation Centres (BICS). These comprise the three regional biotechnology innovation centres, namely, BioPAD, Cape Biotech and LIFElab, a National Plant Biotechnology Innovation Centre, named PlantBio, a technology platform, the National Bioinformatics Network, and a public understanding of Biotechnology programme.

To date, approximately R900 million has been invested by the department in realising the objectives and outputs of each of these Biotechnology Innovation Centres. In terms of performance, the focus of these institutions is not simply to create competitive biotech intellectual property. Rather, we are specifically requiring tangible outputs such as biotech goods and services, new biotech companies, and more ambitiously, a movement towards a South African bio-economy.

A primary focus of the department has also been the implementation of the National Research and Development Strategy of 2002, which embraces a commitment to the realisation of national imperatives such as wealth creation and an improved quality of life, through an integrated approach to human resource development, knowledge generation, investment in infrastructure and improvement of the strategic management of the public science and technology system. These key elements also form the basis of the Ten Year Innovation Plan, which broadly aims to drive a knowledge-based economy.

During early 2008, we published a Ten Year Innovation Plan, which identifies five priority areas of focus. Of these, the Farmer-to-Pharma grand challenge is of particular relevance to the objectives of iThemba Pharmaceuticals. In this case, we want to develop South Africa's biotechnology and pharmaceuticals by harnessing and capitalising on the country's rich biodiversity and indigenous knowledge using biotechnology tools.

This challenge basically identifies the need to pull together biotechnology, indigenous knowledge system (IKS) and South Africa's rich biodiversity in an effort to competitively position the country in the emerging bio-economy. On the other hand, my department is championing the establishment of Centres of Competence to be managed and further developed under the Technology Innovation Agency (TIA), the establishment of which is now eminent following the promulgation of the TIA Act in November last year.

The TIA will be a key intervention to support government in its efforts to stimulate and intensify local technological innovation, and increase South Africa's industrial competitiveness. The TIA will assist our science system in translating our body of knowledge into new commercialisable technology-based products and services.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) Global strategy on public health, innovation and intellectual property acknowledges the initiatives taken, in recent years, by member states, the pharmaceutical industry, charitable foundations and non-governmental organisations to develop new products against diseases affecting developing countries, and the need to increase access to existing health products and medical devices.

However, these initiatives are not sufficient to surmount the challenges of meeting the goal of ensuring access and innovation for needed health products and medical devices. Our commitment to developing biotechnology for South Africa can only be achieved through meaningful partnerships with relevant role players, which include government, universities, science councils, industry, the private sector, international collaborations, philanthropic funders and venture capitalists.

As many of you will know, South Africa has a history of successful engagement with traditional biotechnology. Specific examples include the Cape Wine Industry that dates back over 350 years, and one of the largest breweries in the world. Our people have also created a number of new plant varieties, utilising South Africa's unique indigenous flora.

For example, developments in the Fynbos and Protea families have added great commercial value to the country's efforts on the international cut flower market. We have also established competitive industries in the production of a wide range of dairy products, including cheese, yoghurt, Maas, and baker's yeast.

Notwithstanding these successes, we have been slow to capitalise on our potential in the past few decades, while genetics and genomic sciences were on the rise. Now we must try to catch up with those developing countries that caught the bio-wave such as Brazil, India, China and Cuba. We also recognise the role biotechnology plays in identifying the basis of diseases and developing amongst others, drugs to combat them.

My department is delighted to recognise and support initiatives such as iThemba Pharmaceuticals in which we have investment R30 million through a joint investment between LIFElab and BioPAD, two of the Biotechnology Innovation Centres (BICs). Since funding was secured in 2006, things have moved forward rapidly. A state-of-the-art chemical laboratory has been constructed at a site in Modderfontein, just a few kilometers from here, and the CEO and a number of other key staff with pharmaceutical industry experience, have been appointed.

Through the influence of the iThemba Founders and the Scientific Advisory Board network, strong technical linkages have been established with renowned academic institutions in Europe and the United States, which also include South African universities, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research and the Medical Research Council.

One of the initial technologies licensed to iThemba from Emory University to enable cheaper production of the anti-retroviral drug, Abacavir, will play an important role in addressing the need for more affordable and accessible anti-HIV drugs for South Africa. Another technology licensed from Emory University includes a number of compounds that have potential as anti-TB drugs. Tuberculosis is currently one of the top ten causes of mortality and morbidity in South Africa. Hence, this is another critical area where effective, affordable and accessible treatment is required.

Commercial linkages have been created with a number of respected global biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies, and these will be iThemba's partners in growing the company.

My department is also pleased to note that a library of 20 000 compounds has been provided to iThemba by the UK Medical Research Council, and is being screened for potential anti-malaria drugs. The screening is funded by the Geneva-based Medicines for Malaria Initiative, which has also awarded iThemba its first synthetic chemistry contract.

A collaborative agreement has been finalised between iThemba and Chimerix Incorporated, a US based Biotechnology Company. Under this agreement, iThemba will screen one of Chimerix's potent compound libraries for potential drugs to combat a number of infectious diseases. We are hopeful that the important work that has now begun at iThemba Pharmaceuticals will prove significant and worthy of widespread acclaim for making inroads in combating the so far intractable diseases such as malaria, tuberculosis and the spread of HIV infections, which have handicapped Africa's progress for generations.

These diseases, often working in cahoots with one another, have wreaked havoc across our continent, indiscriminately denying young children a life; cutting down teenagers, heads of households, the rich and the poor, the educated and the illiterate in a random and heartbreaking way, which can be considered as nothing less than genocide by disease. If iThemba can find a way of curtailing the progress of any one of these killers, it would have achieved something definitely remarkable.

The extraordinary team that iThemba has assembled to nurture this enterprise makes us truly optimistic that great things will follow. Allow me the opportunity to acknowledge by name some of the founders of the company who also serve on its Scientific Advisory Board.

These are:
* Dr. Anthony Barrett who is a Glaxo Professor of Chemistry at Imperial College, London, and co-founder of Argenta Discovery, highly successful contract chemistry services company.
* Our own Professor James Bull, an Emeritus Professor of Chemistry at the University of Cape Town, and a consultant-advisor to several pharmaceutical companies.
* Dr. Eric Carreira is Professor of Organic Chemistry at ETH Zurich, and an acknowledged world-expert in natural products chemistry.
* Dr Steven Ley is a BP Professor of Organic Chemistry and Fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge. He co-founded Cambridge Discovery Chemistry, which was later sold to Millennium Pharmaceuticals.
* Dr. Dennis Liotta is a Samuel Candler Dobbs Professor of Chemistry at Emory University, Atlanta. He is the inventor of the successful HIV drugs Emtriva, Reverset and Racivir; and founder of Slainte Bioceuticals and Pharmasset Ltd.
* Dr. George Painter is the co-founder and President of Chimerix Inc., and a former Vice President of Research and Development (R&D) Triangle Pharmaceuticals.
* Dr. Rebanta Bandyopadhyay who is the Chief Scientific Officer of iThemba and has extensive experience in the pharmaceutical industry, including drug discovery and development.
 
I thank you all for your involvement and dedication to this enterprise so far. Your honourable intentions, commitment and enthusiasm are critical to the success of iThemba.

Allow me, in closing, to take this opportunity to urge iThemba, in the course of its endeavours, to work in collaboration with other initiatives, such as the African Traditional Medicines Platform, to mine South Africa's rich biodiversity and indigenous knowledge to produce less costly pharmaceutical products, with limited or zero side effects, for the benefit of all South Africans.

To enhance the pipeline and the delivery of effective and cost-effective treatments for infectious and chronic diseases affecting South Africans, I also encourage you to seek collaboration with the Drug Delivery Platform at WITS University, and the Aptamer Technology Research platform, to name a few.

Many of you will agree that the science and technology system in our country is going through a very challenging, but exciting phase of development. Its development has also received great support from government since 1994.
In 2002, former President Thabo Mbeki had this to say about the NSI: "We have to devote the necessary resources to scientific and technological research and development, including biotechnology. We must further encourage innovation among our people and insure that we introduce new developments into our productive activities."

We definitely need the help that iThemba seeks to provide. South Africa is the most highly developed country in Africa, and most of the continent looks to us to show the way forward. If we can contribute towards the elimination of countless deaths from malaria, HIV infections and tuberculosis, we would have done our bit in reducing the disease burden in Africa. And we have no doubt that iThemba Pharmaceuticals will help us rise to the occasion.

Finally, it gives me singular pleasure to declare iThemba Pharmaceuticals officially open for business. South Africa and the continent wish you good fortune.

I thank you.

Issued by: Department of Science and Technology
19 March 2009
Source: Department of Science and Technology (http:///www.dst.gov.za)