Science, Tech donates R11.5m
2006-02-08 09:49
Johannesburg - The science and technology department is donating R11.5m over the next two and a half years through a scientific collaboration against Malaria, Minister Mosibudi Mangena said on Tuesday.
"This groundbreaking initiative by South African scientists to create Sami (SA Malaria Initiative) is exactly what we need," Mangena said.
"A network of researchers from a range of universities, science councils and other science institutions will co-ordinate their efforts using modern bio-technology, bio-informatics, medicinal chemistry and cutting edge technologies to discover new drugs and develop new diagnostics."
South Africa has the most advanced technology and was best placed to lead Africa's research and development on the disease which kills a million Africans annually, said Sami co-ordinator Jane Morris,
Cutting edge gene technology would be used to study drug resistance in mosquitoes which carry the malaria parasite, said Maureen Coetzee of the National Institute Of Communicable Diseases.
- SAPA