The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in South Africa and the University of Blida in Algeria have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to establish a Joint Centre of Excellence (JCoE) in aeronautics research. The signing took place recently at the International Exhibition of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) in Algeria.

The JCoE is being facilitated by both the Algerian Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, as well as the South African Department of Science and Technology (DST) to establish a working relationship where Algeria would be strengthened in the field of aeronautics, and the South African DST supported in its desire to expand the South African and Algerian science and technology bilateral.

The potential fields of cooperation include technologies for UAVs; avionics and ground systems; aircraft structures; gas turbines; wind tunnels; store integration; hypersonic flow; flow control; space technologies; computational methods; aeroelasticity; optronics; radar and aero acoustics.

Knowledge transfer in the form of staff exchange programmes, postgraduate student programmes, joint seminars and workshops, joint development programmes and co-supervision on postgraduate programmes leading to common publications, form part of the JCoE as well.

“Outside of South Africa, there are really no other significant aeronautics research capabilities and facilities in Africa. Algeria’s equivalent Science and Technology department understands the requirement for Africa to take ownership of its aeronautics research requirements and are delighted to close the African aeronautics research chasm through collaboration with South Africa,” says Major General (retired) Desmond Barker – Acting Executive Director at CSIR DPSS.

More on the International Exhibition of UAVs

Aeronautics experts from the CSIR attended the International Exhibition of UAVs and model aircraft held under the patronage of the President of the Republic of Algeria and facilitated by the Director General of Scientific Research and Technological development in Algeria. The CSIR presented on various topics and performed a flight demonstration of the CSIR’s Indiza Mini UAV.

The exhibition ran over three days with the keynote address given by Barker and concluding with the signing of an MoU between the CSIR (represented by Barker) and the University of Blida (represented by Dr Mohamed Mebarki, Algerian Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research).

The exhibition was organised as part of the 60th anniversary of the start of the Revolution of 1 November 1954, with the participation of universities, research centres including the CSIR, and Algerian national institutions, such as the Ministry of National Defence. Also participating at the exhibitions were foreign universities and scientific institutions specialised in the field of aeronautics from several countries, including Tunisia, Germany, Spain, France, the United Kingdom, Russia and Brazil.