Pretoria, Wednesday 4 June 2025 – The Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC), on behalf of the Department of Science, Technology and Innovation (DSTI), is calling on South African businesses to participate in two of its business innovation surveys, starting on 5 June 2025, across all nine provinces.
The South African Business Innovation Survey (BIS) and the Agricultural Business Innovation Survey (AgriBIS) will gather crucial data on how firms in the industry, services, and agriculture sectors are innovating.
In a dynamic and challenging economic landscape, with rising input costs, funding constraints and shifts in global trade dynamics, understanding how, why, and why businesses do not innovate is ever more vital. The data intend to support evidence-based policymaking and at the same time allow businesses to benchmark their innovation activity and outputs relative to their industry.
According to the Executive Head of the HSRC’s Centre for Science, Technology and Innovation Indicators (CeSTII), Dr Glenda Kruss, South Africa has not made significant progress in transforming the structure of its economy to sustainably generate higher incomes and wealth for all.
“Economists propose the need for building dynamic sectoral clusters, which can link skills development, build technological capabilities such as design, testing and prototyping, and support firms to pool resources, create economies of scale and develop markets.
“Understanding South African firms’ innovation and technological capabilities provides critical data to inform collective action, towards public and private investment that can promote our own dynamic sectoral clusters,” said Dr Kruss.
Businesses will be contacted to find out information about what innovations took place during the period 2022–2024, how innovations occur at the firm level, and what can be done to enhance innovation and production capabilities.Top of Form
Kgomotso Matjila, Chief Director for Science and Technology Investments, at the DSTI, leads the department’s team responsible for commissioning the surveys.
“To grow an inclusive economy in South Africa, that is also productive and competitive, we need to design and provide the right kinds of support to incentivise and stimulate innovation investments by firms. For this, our national innovation surveys are an essential source of evidence,” said Matjila.
Fieldwork for both surveys will be conducted by HSRC’s partner, Sigma Kairos Research and Consulting. Their fieldworkers will contact business leaders and managers to complete the surveys online, or via telephone interview.
The HSRC extends its sincere thanks in advance to the South African business community, as we all work together to expand innovative solutions to drive structural change and shape the future of South Africa’s economy.
For more information:
Please visit our website or contact:
Business Innovation Survey Lead | Dr Amy Kahn| Human Sciences Research Council | akahn@hsrc.ac.za | +27 21 466 7843
Agricultural Business Innovation Survey Lead | Dr Yasser Buchana| Human Sciences Research Council | ybuchana@hsrc.ac.za | +27 21 466 7840
Sigma Kairos Research & Consulting Fieldwork Coordinator |Ms Nombulelo Nhlapho |Nombulelo.Nhlapo@sigmakairos.co.za | +27 10 109 1819
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For media enquiries, please contact Adziliwi Nematandani: Cell: +27 82 765 9191 Email: anematandani@hsrc.ac.za
Notes to the editor
About the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC)
The HSRC was established in 1968 as South Africa’s statutory research agency and has grown to become the largest dedicated research institute in the social sciences and humanities on the African continent, doing cutting-edge public research in areas that are crucial to development.
Our mandate is to inform the effective formulation and monitoring of government policy; to evaluate policy implementation; to stimulate public debate through the effective dissemination of research-based data and fact-based research results; to foster research collaboration; and to help build research capacity and infrastructure for the human sciences.
The Council conducts large-scale, policy-relevant, social-scientific research for public sector users, non-governmental organisations and international development agencies. Research activities and structures are closely aligned with South Africa’s national development priorities.
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