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SONA 2021 – A dream deferred yet again

15 February 2021 | Story Prof Sethulego Matebesi | Photo Sonia Small

Dr Sethulego Matebesi — Prof Sethulego Matebesi is a senior lecturer and Academic Head of the Department of Sociology at the University of the Free State.

Opinion article by Prof Sethulego Matebesi, Senior Lecturer and Academic Head of the Department of Sociology in the Faculty of The Humanities, University of the Free State.

In Langston Hughes’ poem, Harlem, the opening line poses a simple yet profound question: ‘What happens to a dream deferred?’ Hughes then arrives at a provocative conclusion: ‘Maybe it just sags like a heavy load. Or does it explode?’

In sharp contrast, President Cyril Ramaphosa’s 2021 State of the Nation address expectedly began by sharing a story of hope, resilience, and inspiration. In a slight departure from his usual presentation style, powerful rhetorical and inspiring themes were a notable feature of the President’s address. By highlighting South Africa’s COVID-19 vaccine rollout programme, boosting the unemployment rate, economic recovery, and fighting corruption as the government’s key priorities, the President wove together the challenges and opportunities we face as a nation.

Pitfalls of the mass vaccination drive

Thus far, the South African government has led a commendable intervention strategy against the coronavirus. While there seems to be a concrete vision of how to implement the mass vaccination drive, the realisation is there is overwhelming evidence of how various challenges have compromised immunisation programmes in the country. Adopting the current Expanded Programme on Immunisation (EPI) strategies to champion the COVID-19 mass vaccination drive will be insufficient in the context of porous borders, overwhelmed primary healthcare workers, and intense and significant epidemiological changes of the virus. The last challenge is not only akin to SA. Therefore, it is imperative that a better understanding of population mobility and more targeted and evidence-informed strategies will be crucial in mounting a sufficient mass vaccination drive.

Unemployment – a mixed bag of fortunes

Long before COVID-19 ravaged the South African labour market, unemployment has been one of the country’s key challenges. In a country where half of the youth are unemployed, it was expected that SONA 2021 would provide a glimmer hope to subvert the poor socio-economic outcomes of unemployment. But the dream for many unemployed South Africans remains out of reach as short-term initiatives such as the extension of the Special COVID-19 Grant of R350 and the Presidential Employment Stimulus will not be able to cushion the ravages of long-term unemployment many South Africans have to endure. Despite the delays and teething implementation challenges of these employment relief packages, they will again face a breaking point when these interventions end.

The COVID-19 pandemic has undoubtedly led to an unprecedented number of job losses. This situation will continue due to deindustrialisation, depressing investment and the complacency of South African institutions. For example, the President mentioned several relief measures, including the Public Employment Programme, which created 3.2 million work opportunities. However, there remain serious doubts about planning around youth employment.

The President stated that the government reached 1,000 businesses by International Youth Day in August 2020, is a far cry from the 15,000 start-ups planned to be supported by 2020. Another complicating factor is that institutions like the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA), which has to play a leading role in assisting young citizens to become successful entrepreneurs, is highly politicised and embedded in the intra-political battles of the ruling party. The fact that there is still no board for the NYDA is indicative of the challenges of fighting youth unemployment. Effective managerial accountability and control of financial resources will go a long way in assisting agencies such as the NYDA in meeting their mandates.

Economic recovery and corruption

The President’s speech highlighted a myriad of plans to restructure, rebuild and revive the South African economy. Comparatively, the President's fifth SONA had more detail about milestones reached and practical strategies to implement plans. Expectedly, he also lamented the impact of state capture and the COVID-19 pandemic.

South Africans are now looking to finance minister, Tito Mboweni’s upcoming national Budget Review for details on how the government will fund the President's priorities. However, attempts to grow an ailing economy are impeded by the continuing energy supply crisis, the lack of scope to utilise digital technologies to shape economic opportunities, and rampant corruption.

The measures against corruption mentioned in the State of the Nation are welcomed. The same cannot be said about the political commitment to deal with the challenge. But what difference will the launch of a National Anti-Corruption Advisory Council make if the government fails to act decisively on the Auditor-General’s reports which highlight an average of R50billion in irregular expenditure annually? Pronouncements by the President about fighting corruption have become a norm. There are pockets of success in this regard. Yet the scourge of corruption and greed in government institutions continues unabatedly.

Global experience has shown that robust, transparent and accountable public institutions can be catalytic in securing and sustaining good governance. Without good governance, our youth will continue to stand on street corners looking for jobs, many will continue to go to bed on empty stomachs, our lights will remain off, and we will continue to be imprisoned in our homes due to the high crime rate in the country.

Only time will tell what will happen to dreams deferred yet again.

News Archive

Eye tracker device a first in Africa

2013-07-31

31 July 2013

Keeping an eye on empowerment

"If we can see what you see, we can think what you think."

Eye-tracking used to be one of those fabulous science-fiction inventions, along with Superman-like bionic ability. Could you really use the movement of your eyes to read people's minds? Or drive your car? Or transfix your enemy with a laser-beam?

Well, actually, yes, you can (apart, perhaps, from the laser beam… ). An eye tracker is not something from science fiction; it actually exists, and is widely used around the world for a number of purposes.

Simply put, an eye tracker is a device for measuring eye positions and eye movement. Its most obvious use is in marketing, to find out what people are looking at (when they see an advertisement, for instance, or when they are wandering along a supermarket aisle). The eye tracker measures where people look first, what attracts their attention, and what they look at the longest. It is used extensively in developed countries to predict consumer behaviour, based on what – literally – catches the eye.

On a more serious level, psychologists, therapists and educators can also use this device for a number of applications, such as analysis and education. And – most excitingly – eye tracking can be used by disabled people to use a computer and thereby operate a number of devices and machines. Impaired or disabled people can use eye tracking to get a whole new lease on life.

In South Africa and other developing countries, however, eye tracking is not widely used. Even though off-the-shelf webcams and open-source software can be obtained extremely cheaply, they are complex to use and the quality cannot be guaranteed. Specialist high-quality eye-tracking devices have to be imported, and they are extremely expensive – or rather – they used to be. Not anymore.

The Department of Computer Science and Informatics (CSI) at the University of the Free State has succeeded in developing a high-quality eye tracker at a fraction of the cost of the imported devices. Along with the hardware, the department has also developed specialised software for a number of applications. These would be useful for graphic designers, marketers, analysts, cognitive psychologists, language specialists, ophthalmologists, radiographers, occupational and speech therapists, and people with disabilities. In the not-too-distant future, even fleet owners and drivers would be able to use this technology.

"The research team at CSI has many years of eye-tracking experience," says team leader Prof Pieter Blignaut, "both with the technical aspect as well as the practical aspect. We also provide a multi-dimensional service to clients that includes the equipment, training and support. We even provide feedback to users.

"We have a basic desktop model available that can be used for research, and can be adapted so that people can interact with a computer. It will be possible in future to design a device that would be able to operate a wheelchair. We are working on a model incorporated into a pair of glasses which will provide gaze analysis for people in their natural surroundings, for instance when driving a vehicle.

"Up till now, the imported models have been too expensive," he continues. "But with our system, the technology is now within reach for anyone who needs it. This could lead to economic expansion and job creation."

The University of the Free State is the first manufacturer of eye-tracking devices in Africa, and Blignaut hopes that the project will contribute to nation-building and empowerment.

"The biggest advantage is that we now have a local manufacturer providing a quality product with local training and support."

In an eye-tracking device, a tiny infra-red light shines on the eye and causes a reflection which is picked up by a high-resolution camera. Every eye movement causes a change in the reflection, which is then mapped. Infra-red light is not harmful to the eye and is not even noticed. Eye movement is then completely natural.

Based on eye movements, a researcher can study cognitive patterns, driver behaviour, attention spans, even thinking patterns. A disabled person could use their eye-movements to interact with a computer, with future technology (still in development) that would enable that computer to control a wheelchair or operate machinery.

The UFS recently initiated the foundation of an eye-tracking interest group for South Africa (ETSA) and sponsor a biennial-eye tracking conference. Their website can be found at www.eyetrackingsa.co.za.

“Eye tracking is an amazing tool for empowerment and development in Africa, “ says Blignaut, “but it is not used as much as it should be, because it is seen as too expensive. We are trying to bring this technology within the reach of anyone and everyone who needs it.”

Issued by: Lacea Loader
Director: Strategic Communication

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