With the challenges the Eastern Cape faces of the closure of OEM’s, the Technology Innovation Agency (TIA), an entity of the Department of Science, Technology and Innovation (DSTI) reinforced its commitment to fostering a vibrant innovation ecosystem in the Eastern Cape with a successful innovation and industry roundtable, under the theme “innovation from the Eastern Cape to the world” on Friday, 22 August 2025. The event served as a platform to reintroduce TIA’s mandate and collaborative approach to local stakeholders, government, academia, industry, innovators, SMMEs and strategic partners.
According to the TIA, the event’s significance was heightened by the province’s pressing socio-economic challenges. With the Eastern Cape’s official unemployment rate standing at over 41%, TIA’s presence is a direct response to the need for inclusive economic growth and enterprise development which can lead to job creation.
The roundtable provided a critical opportunity to communicate the government agency’s vision and highlight a range of funding and commercialisation opportunities available to startups, Small, Medium, and Micro-sized Enterprises SMME), and academic researchers, all of which are instrumental in developing new industries and employment opportunities.
In his keynote address, TIA’s Acting Chief Executive Officer, Ismail Abdoola, emphasised the Agency’s role beyond funding, positioning TIA as a vital connector, enabler and facilitator within the innovation landscape. He highlighted the importance of innovation in addressing local challenges in an inclusive and equitable manner.
“Each province has a role to play in the national innovation agenda based on its industries and unique challenges. This Roundtable engagement with industry, academia and funding institutions is a strategic step to foster partnerships that strengthen an inclusive, resilient and interconnected innovation ecosystem in the Eastern Cape. This will bring TIA’s national impact closer to local innovators and unlock funding, commercialisation and technical support opportunities for local startups, researchers, and SMMEs,” said Abdoola.
The discussions resonated with the pressing need for economic reinvention. TIA’s GM for strategic partnership, business development and stakeholder relations, Tandokazi Nquma-Moyo, highlighted the provincial challenges, including the closure of business operations due to global restructuring and the general decline in the automotive industry.
She affirmed TIA’s role in leveraging local assets to combat these issues. “We have three commercial seaports, including a deepwater port, where the province is upgrading infrastructure to maximise import and export capacity,” she noted, adding that TIA is partnering with the local business chamber to work with industry on these challenges. The Nelson Mandela Bay Business Chamber (NMBBC) stands as one of the most trusted and influential voices for local business and the economy. Its activist, collaborative, and action-oriented approach aligns strongly with TIA’s mission to drive innovation, unlock investment, and create sustainable opportunities, according to the government agency.
Kelvin Naidoo, President of the NMBBC echoed these sentiments, explaining that the Chamber has established a local economy reinvention think-tank.
“Looking at the assets the Eastern Cape is endowed with, including the sun, wind and our three ports, a strengthened innovation system would greatly impact the province’s economic growth. As the chamber, one of our key strategic priorities is to promote trade and investment by developing initiatives targeted at sustaining and growing small businesses, through national partnerships and linkages. Through a collaboration with TIA, we will be building partnerships that retain and attract investment and ensure that innovation is a central driver of growth in the province and beyond,” said Naidoo.
The day was met with positive feedback from the stakeholders, affirming TIA’s role as a lead voice in the Eastern Cape’s innovation discourse.
“Our interactions here underscored a clear message that the Eastern Cape has the talent, ideas and industries to drive inclusive innovation. What’s needed now is deeper collaboration to turn potential into impact. Our presence today is about strengthening partnerships, unlocking opportunities, and building an inclusive innovation ecosystem.
TIA looks forward to building on this momentum, working collaboratively with all stakeholders to strengthen the innovation ecosystem and transform innovative ideas into sustainable commercial ventures. These will drive tangible socio-economic development aligned with the province’s strategies,” said Abdoola.
