Collaboration amongst key role-players in the Western Cape lifesciences sector

Press Release - January 2007

Acorn Technologies (Acorn), Cape Biotech Trust (CBT) and the Medical Research Council Innovation Center MRC IC) have formed a collaborative initiative in the Western Cape, named Kopano Lifesciences.  (Kopano means “getting together” in Tswana).  The collaborations and interactions between the three centers are in the form of a loose consortium (governed by a memorandum of agreement) with the overall objective as summarized in the following mission statement:

“To harness the collective strengths and resources of the three centers, Acorn Technologies, the Cape Biotech Trust and the Medical Research Council Innovation Centre so as to more efficiently and effectively commercialize research discovery and thereby accelerate the establishment of a sustainable South African life sciences sector”.

The three innovation centers all play crucial and distinct but very complimentary roles along the innovation value chain (see below), it is hoped that closer collaboration will facilitate a more effective process in pulling projects through the innovation value chain:

• The MRC IC functions at the scientific input end of the pipeline with a strong ability to access research projects at Higher Education Institutions (HEIs).
• The CBT is geared toward early stage entrepreneurship, business development and commercialization of projects and is able to invest in appropriate projects.
•  Acorn is focused on the incubation of new businesses and support commercialization of projects.

The three centers have defined the consortium’s goals and objectives as outlined below.

• Streamline the innovation pipeline
• Optimize effectiveness of government-funded programmes
• Share resources and expertise
• Fast track projects to commercialization
• Increase links with industry
• Deliver on social responsibilities
• Develop entrepreneurial & business skills
• Instill a culture of entrepreneurship and/or innovation
• Capacity development (IP/Tech-Transfer, innovation)
• Leverage/raise external funds
• Creation of & access to wider networks
• Pro-actively promote a collaborative ethos
• Intellectual capital development
• Enterprise creation
• New product & technology development
• Grow the economy

Figure 1:  Generic representation of the Innovation Chain