Higher Education and Training

Postgraduate Student Funding, a Finance perspective for

Fees Commission

Mr Bishen Singh, CFO

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THE NRF MANDATE NRF Act: - The object of the Foundation is to contribute to national development by:

(a) supporting and promoting research through funding, representative human capital development and the provision of the necessary research infrastructure in order to facilitate the creation of knowledge, innovation & development in all fields of science and technology, including humanities, social sciences and indigenous knowledge;

(b) supporting and maintaining national facilities; (c) supporting and promoting public awareness of & engagement with

science;(d) promoting the development and maintenance of the national science

system and support of Government priorities.

In the context of our mandate, we support researchers, postgraduate students in all disciplines including those that come through NSFAS to become future researchers

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Dual Funding System• There is need to provide adequate funding for postgraduate students,

researchers, research infrastructure as enablers for generating newknowledge and enhancing our research and innovation

• The university sector has dual funding streams – directed – via theNational Research Foundation an agency of the Department of Scienceand Technology and general – DHET subsidy including NSFAS

• The NRF funds 10% of all postgraduate students in the country whileNSFAS funds 25% of all undergraduate students in the country.

• The funding of researchers at universities comes in the form of NRFresearch grants, student bursaries and scholarships, large infrastructureequipment grants which cannot be based at one single university.

• In 2015 only, the NRF funded a total of 12719 postgraduate studentbursaries and scholarships with to the amount of R732.70 million

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Background on MTEF submissions

• Annually NRF submits MTEF baseline assessment to DST - main elements highlighted constitute lower than inflationary adjustments and the impact on NRF and how these are to be managed

• Department of Science and Technology (DST)/the National Treasury (NT) did not entertain any new submissions since 2013/14 citing funding challenges due to the economic situation

• Most significant submission is a detailed proposal entitled ‘Scaling up the SA Research Enterprise’. Elements of the proposal are included in the NDP but the proposal remains unfunded. (see slides later in presentation)

• NRF is unaware of what DST submits to NT on behalf of its entities

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Parliamentary Grant funding

• Actual movement below inflation – no room for meaningful growth • Almost all years growth has been negative in nominal / real terms• If CPI related increases was allocated – the NRF baseline would in 2019 be R1,3 billion

against the current projected figure of R979 mil. A shortfall of R331 mil.• The annual funding gap since 2009 is on the increase and cuts in 2009 – 2011 due to the

economic constraints has resulted in re-baselining the organisation

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Parliamentary Grant compared to NRF inflation

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SARChI SKA

• Parliamentary grant year-on-year movement is unstable • Well below CPI and NRF internal inflation• The two peaks relate to the years in which SARCHi and SKA was included in the baseline• Excluding these the PG is declining in real terms over the years

Total Actual Income – High Level Split

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2006/07 2007/08 2008/09 2009/10 2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 2015/16

Other income 73 104 151 136 150 123 124 154 177 243

Designated income 317 453 700 836 1266 1113 1270 1594 1352 1306

Ring-fenced income 138 142 196 138 139 127 153 597 717 1736

Parliamentary grant 489 527 536 591 630 769 766 816 851 878

Total income 1016 1226 1584 1701 2185 2132 2312 3161 3098 4163

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

3000

3500

4000

4500

Sources of Funding (R'm)

• Almost flat PG (baseline) funding

• Growth in ring-fenced and designated/ contract funding

Total Expenditure – High Level Split

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2006/07

2007/08

2008/09

2009/10

2010/11

2011/12

2012/13

2013/14

2014/15

2015/16

Net capital expenditure 46 30 79 109 79 71 192 366 238 345

Employees' remuneration 224 245 287 328 370 401 435 474 532 578

Programme, operating and otherexpenditure

210 258 312 310 361 435 404 435 513 665

Grants, bursaries & otherresearch funding

525 646 911 965 1365 1282 1282 1863 1788 2556

Total expenditure 1005 1179 1589 1711 2175 2189 2313 3138 3071 4145

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

3000

3500

4000

4500

Expenditure (R'm)

• 60% of NRF funds allocated to grants and bursaries

• Capex primarily SKA Project

RISA Funding

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RISA Investment R'm2008/09

Actual

2009/10

Actual

2010/11

Actual

2011/12

Actual

2012/13

Actual

2013/14

Actual

2014/15

Actual

2015/16

Actual

2016/17

Budget

2017/18

Budget

2018/19

Budget

2019/20

Budget

Next Generation 193.93 194.77 333.94 220.58 370.39 469.12 623.65 815.57 728.35 821.29 828.29 856.06

Emerging Researchers 51.79 56.87 117.62 76.24 82.60 112.25 166.72 211.75 207.94 237.35 235.76 239.71

Cross Cutting Instruments 215.63 227.91 206.70 201.69 198.36 201.19 239.85 228.95 198.60 181.33 138.93 134.47

Established Researchers 117.40 124.34 139.05 154.14 147.67 153.15 205.15 248.61 219.08 225.23 229.09 232.68

Strategic Investments 184.26 209.86 263.01 280.52 322.98 389.73 509.80 583.88 741.58 799.82 811.89 859.99

Cutting-edge research equipment investments 92.34 89.93 186.06 193.18 90.35 158.35 244.19 224.26 298.35 322.77 285.07 211.56

Local and international collaboration wrt equipment usage 0.22 0.48 0.43 0.94 1.17 1.08 1.68 1.23 8.51 2.00 2.00 2.00

Total Income 855.56 904.16 1 246.80 1 127.29 1 213.51 1 484.86 1 991.05 2 314.25 2 402.42 2 589.80 2 531.03 2 536.47

Commentary on Income/Expenditure

• Parliamentary/Other income constitutes 25% of total income which funds the organisations operations and grants

• Balance of 75% of income is either ring-fenced or contract funding directed primarily to DST initiatives

• The NRF does not have any latitude in the manner in which the 75% can be utilised or reprioritised

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Request from Minister of Science and Technology:

1. “What would it take to deliver on NRF’s ambitious

strategic intentions?”

2. “NRF to respond to recommendations highlighted in

the ASSAf PhD Study.”

Scaling up Postgraduate Student Funding

Targeting Needy Students

• Important to tap into all talent available

• Without adequate financial support, needy students more likely to be discouraged to pursue research careers negating the investment made at the undergraduate level through NSFAS

• NRF wants to be consistent with the policy choices of government with regard to awarding bursaries to needy postgraduate students

• Levels of financial support to be substantial enough to enable students to succeed.

• Any funding model must be scalable and support sustainable growth of HE

Scaling up the SA Research Enterprise

Outcome 2010 2020

1. PhD outputs 1 200 per annum 6 000 per annum

2. Direct additional science jobs 0 ~ 1 000

3. Available fundamental discipline-based funding per active ISI researcher* (excluding strategic and directed funding)

R20 000 per annum R150 000 per annum

4. Number of ISI active researchers* 5 000 15 000

5. Transformed science workforce Non-representative Representative

6. ISI scientific outputs 10 000 per annum 30 000 per annum

7. Globally competitive science infrastructure Below par Globally competitive

8. Critical mass of science workforce per thousand people employed

1,5 2,0

9. Proportion of global R&D outputs 0,5%1,0% (2011

benchmarked)

Bid submitted to DST

Funding request to scale up the research enterprise

THANK YOU

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