Vision & Mission

Championing urban regional industrialisation through Science, Technology and Innovation

We cannot change the past. We can shape the future.

Origins Three Pivotal Moments

The STI Business Forum did not emerge from theory. It was forged in three defining moments that revealed both the opportunity and the gap.

May 2024
Government of National Unity

South Africa forms a new GNU, creating unprecedented cross-party alignment for economic transformation.

August 2024
Presidential Imbizo, Tsakane Stadium

President Cyril Ramaphosa commits to the Ekurhuleni University of Applied Science and Innovation as a 7th Administration priority.

March 2025
National Transformation Summit

A national call to action crystallises the need for an industry-led STI execution mechanism.

The STI Business Forum was established as the direct response — an NPO bridging government intent and private-sector execution.

Identity Who We Are

Three statements that define the Forum's reason for being.

Vision

To develop a productive and competitive Science, Technology & Innovation ecosystem, and ensure inter-provincial urban industrialisation for a more advanced and inclusive society.

Mission

Championing urban regional industrialisation through Science, Technology and Innovation.

Purpose

Promote inclusive economic growth through STI and drive industrial innovation as a catalyst for urban development and re-industrialisation.

The Forum is a public-private platform — not a government agency, not purely private. It is the policy-to-execution layer connecting capital deployment to STI priorities.

Strategic Foundation Five Core Aims

The foundational commitments that guide every programme, partnership, and investment the Forum undertakes.

1
Promoting inclusive economic growth through Science, Technology and Innovation
2
Driving industrial innovation through STI as a catalyst for urban development and re-industrialisation
3
Fostering collaboration between public, private, and academic sectors
4
Supporting the development of a skilled, adaptable workforce
5
Advocating for evidence-based STI policy and investment

Policy Alignment Three Strategic Policy Tracks

Each track anchors the Forum's programmes to national policy frameworks, ensuring alignment with government priorities.

National STI Policy

Aligned with the 2019 White Paper on Science, Technology and Innovation — translating national ambition into industrial execution.

STEAM Education Policy

Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Mathematics workforce development — building the human capital pipeline for a knowledge economy.

Urban Regional STI Industrial Innovation

Metro-level innovation clusters driving re-industrialisation — concentrating capacity where economic density already exists.

Transformation From Intent to Execution

Before

  • Advocacy talk
  • Fragmented coordination
  • Paper MOUs
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After

  • Systematic execution
  • Auditable governance
  • Measurable impact