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Under the auspices of the United Nations, South Africa and its defence force are playing a vital role in peacekeeping on the African continent from locations as varied as the DRC and Burundi to Sudan and the Comoros. Against this backdrop, CSIR scientists are hard at work in their support to find scientific solutions to bring about peace and development.
As the world celebrates World Science Day for Peace and Development (WSDPD) on 10 November, CSIR researchers Louise Leenen and Mapule Modise of the CSIR’s command, control and information warfare area, are hard at work to develop supporting techniques for military forces deployed on peace support operations.
Established by UNESCO in 2001, the WSDPD is celebrated on 10 November each year. The day is an occasion to reaffirm UNESCO's mandate and commitment to science. WSDPD’s objectives are to strengthen public awareness on the role of science for peaceful and sustainable societies, promote national and international solidarity for a shared science between countries, renew national and international commitment for the use of science for the benefit of societies and to draw attention to the challenges faced by science, while raising support for the scientific endeavour.
The two researchers completed a project where they investigated technologies required by military forces engaging in peace support operations. Based on their findings, they have identified specific areas where they have mapped out future research projects.
“Although the challenges are diverse and complex,” says Leenen, “we have identified certain problematic areas such as decision support, surveillance and monitoring, force protection and situational awareness.”
Modise continues, "Due to the complex nature of peace support operations and the fact that defence forces are often stretched to their limits, it is becoming increasingly difficult to plan and execute these operations. As a result, we follow a socio-technical approach that offers an effective way to address the complex interplay between humans and technologies. We look at a number of things that can have an impact on the success of a peace support operation, such as human behaviour, cultural issues and resources.
“A peace support operation is a multi-faceted operation involving military forces, governmental departments, regional authorities and civilian institutions. Our aim is to develop a planning model that could be a tool to assist a military force in these endeavours.” They add that this is a long-term research project still in its early stages.
Leenen is a computer scientist, holds a Master’s in operations research, and is in the final stages of her PhD in constraint programming. Modise holds honours degrees in both psychology and operations research, and is currently busy with her Master’s in operations research
CSIR Communication:
Mzimasi Gcukumana, email: Mzimasi Gcukumana
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