Industrial and innovation policy in the face of the Covid-19 health crisis: the case of South Africa’s national ventilator project

Abstract

The Covid-19 pandemic disrupted supply chains across the globe and production for many critical and essential goods was brought to a standstill. One of the essential goods that South Africa could not easily access was the medical equipment needed in the time of a health crisis. The pandemic put into sharp focus the challenges associated with global chains and the shortage of ventilators signaled that developing country’s needed to prioritize self-sufficiency in medical equipment to avoid critical shortages in the future. The importance of knowledge transfer from resource-based to manufacturing industries has been widely studied in the South African context. This research extends the study of knowledge transfer by looking into the importance of knowledge transfer from other manufacturing sectors towards the knowledge and technological capability in the production ventilators. A case study of the National Ventilator Project (NVP) is undertaken by a method of semi-structured interview with individuals from companies that are involved in the project including public and private enterprises and bodies such as the National Association of Automotive Component and Allied Manufacturers, the South African Radio Astronomy Observatory and the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition. The study examined to what extent to which the NVP been successful in reconfiguring and retooling existing local manufacturing capabilities in other sectors towards ventilator production in an attempt to respond to the Covid-19 health crisis. The case study found that the project was successful and its success depended on a strong partnership between the state institutions, public organizations and the private sector. It was also found on the other hand, however, that there is not yet a long-term industrial policy strategy that aims to build continuous medical equipment production in South Africa. It is absolutely urgent that the government creates and clear and well-designed industrial policy that leverages on the learning that has been accrued during this crisis.