An environmental aspect: the focus is on preserving the natural world, such as climate change, greenhouse gas emissions, biodiversity loss, deforestation, pollution, energy efficiency and water management.

A social aspect: the focus is on people and relationships including working to support gender and diversity, equity, and inclusion, enhancing customer satisfaction and employee engagement.

A governance aspect: the focus is on moving beyond how organisations have been typically governed in the past. Examples of specific topics include board composition, cybersecurity practices, management structure, executive compensation, and the prevention of bribery and corruption.

• A signature or an initial on a document may be made by or on behalf of a person by the use of an electronic signature or an advanced electronic signature
• Proxy forms, annual financial statements, prospectuses and annual reports may be lawfully created, signed, retained and sent electronically
• Meetings of shareholders and directors respectively may be conducted entirely by electronic communication
• The definition of “present at a meeting” includes a “virtual presence” or representation by electronic proxy.

The Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement sets government policy goals and priorities, forecasts macroeconomic trajectory and projects the fiscal framework over the next three years by outlining spending and revenue estimates, among others.

South Africa is at a critical point economically. Historically too many political decisions have been made that have impacted negatively on South Africa’s fiscal framework. Treasury no longer has that luxury and we anxiously await to hear positive steps to be taken by the minister of finance.

We will publish our review of the budget speech shortly after it has been delivered.

The proposed amendments include the following:

• Refining the definition of R&D to make it simpler to understand and adjudicate, resulting in an easier application process;
• Clarifying that the intention has always been that the incentive should only apply to activities with an aim of solving a scientific or technological uncertainty;
• Moving away from an “end-result” or IP statute approach to recognise the reality that R&D involves uncertainty and risk, and that it is not practical to expect taxpayers to have detailed knowledge of how their envisaged R&D activities will unfold at the time of applying for the incentive;
• Instead, moving towards incorporating some principles of the OECD Frascati Manual, i.e. that activities should be novel, uncertain, systematic and transferable and/or reproducible;
• The suggested approach allows for the removal of the “innovative” requirement from the definition of R&D, which has yielded unintended complexity and misunderstanding (government recognises that innovation can happen without R&D, and that it does not necessarily encompass R&D);
• To ensure that R&D activities are non-obvious or inventive to qualify for the incentive, the revised definition should include the test of whether a professional in the field with appropriate knowledge and skills would resolve that scientific or technological uncertainty without undertaking any R&D activities (i.e. systematic investigative or systematic experimental activities);
• To amend the exclusion for internal business processes so that – if an activity is systematic investigative or systematic experimental with an aim of resolving a scientific or technological uncertainty and it meets the proposed (revised) definition of R&D for the purposes of this incentive, it should be considered R&D – regardless of whether it is intended for sale or the use thereof is granted to connected parties;
• Introducing an exclusion for agrochemical products such that activities conducted solely in preparation for the registration of products to comply with the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development are excluded from the incentive;
• Introducing a six-month grace period for receipt of pre-approval applications to allow smaller applicants, new applicants or applicants undertaking R&D in a new field to gather more information regarding the intended R&D activities so that they are in a better position to provide detailed information and thus benefit from the incentive;
• Introducing an information disclosure requirement to allow the Commissioner of SARS to disclose certain information to the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation that will enable a better monitoring and evaluation function; and
• Introducing sanctions for breach of secrecy

• To ensure a science-based response to the climate crisis, which is centrally important to our just transition, we are funding a wide range of research, development and innovation (RDI) programmes and interventions. These include the Global Change Research Plan (GCRP) and its associated programmes and interventions; a Marine and Antarctic Strategy; the South African Risk and Vulnerability Atlas (SARVA); Water and Waste RDI Roadmaps; the Bio-economy Strategy; Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS); Earth Observation work under the Space Sub-Programme; the hydrogen and fuel cell technology development process (Hydrogen Society Roadmap), detailed mapping of renewable energy resources, via wind and solar atlases the advanced batteries (energy storage) initiative, and multiple programmes on moving towards a circular economy, and finally a strong research focus on water resources
• Our Parliament is in the process of conducting final consultations on our Climate Change Bill – a landmark framework legislation for South Africa’s climate change response. The climate change bill will provide for a coordinated approach between the spheres of government as well as to regulate climate action by the economic sectors
• We have approved the methodology to set sectoral emissions targets. These will be revised on a rolling basis, and will provide sectors with a strategic framework for our contribution towards global decarbonisation efforts;
• We approved the methodology to set carbon budgets for large emitters
• Our National Adaptation Strategy has been approved and is being implemented in all spheres of government
• We adopted a Just Transition Framework developed through our Presidential Climate Commission. The Just Transition Framework informs the basis for our long-term climate action, and affirms South
  Africa’s contribution to the net zero decarbonisation goal, firmly set in the context of our sustainable development challenges
• Finally, a Presidential Climate Finance Task Team has been established to lead and coordinate negotiations with the International Partner Group to give effect to the Just Energy Transition Partnership or JETP

Sincerely,