The UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD)  has a project promoting technology assessment (TA) in the energy and agricultural sectors in Africa.

In South Africa, following a comprehensive review of national development plans and the technological landscape, it has been decided that the focus of the TA is on green hydrogen electrolyser technologies. This technology holds the potential contributing to South Africa’s goals of attaining net-zero carbon status by the 2050 target. Moreover, through its prior accumulated expertise on this area and the availability of adequate land and resources, South Africa is in a good position to establish industrial-scale energy plants.

In 2023 and 2024, various data collection initiatives including a focus group discussion took place to ensure a participatory and inclusive approach of the TA. These engagements gathered valuable perspectives from various stakeholders such as government representatives, regulatory bodies, academia, the private sector, and civil society.

Following the focus group discussion, the collected data underwent thorough analysis. The insights derived from this analysis and the resulting policy recommendations have been incorporated into a comprehensive TA Report, which also outlines the research carried out in the previous months. Additionally, a draft Action Plan has been formulated to delineate the measures and activities that stakeholders are expected to undertake over different time periods.

A crucial step in finalising this endeavour is to validate the findings and recommendations of the TA Report and proposed Action Plan. Recognising the significance of stakeholder input in this validation process, the Department of Science and Innovation (DSI), in collaboration with the UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD), is organizing a joint physical validation workshop. This workshop is designed to provide stakeholders with a platform to offer feedback on the TA Report and Action Plan and validate them before they are finalised and launched.