Rob Adam

Robert Martin Adam (born 13 September 1955) is the director of the Square Kilometer Array (SKA) radio-telescope in South Africa. and Director General of the South African Department of Science and Technology. He has worked as a consultant to the governments of Namibia and Chile, and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of South Africa.

Early life Adam's father, James, was a metallurgist, and he grew up in mining towns. He finished school at Bishops, a private school in Cape Town.

Studies Adam obtained a BSc (Hons) degree with distinction in chemistry and the Percy Gordon Memorial Award for the top honours student from the University of Cape Town in 1978. In 1980, after two years working in carbon fibre technology in England, he returned to South Africa and was employed by the South African Council for Higher Education. His task was to develop distance learning courses in physical science and mathematics in English for people whose first language was not English. After joining the ANC he returned to the country: "What the ANC did for me was give me a way to go home again, in a way that I found acceptable." Adam was released on 9 February 1990, together with many other political prisoners as part of the steps towards a democratic South Africa.

Career in government In 1995 Adam was appointed as a chief director in the former Department of Art, Culture, Science and Technology (DACST). In 1996 he was promoted to the post of Deputy Director-General for science and technology.

In 1999 Adam became the Director General of DACST, under Minister Ben Ngubane. in the latter period under Minister Mosibudi Mangena. He held this position until 2006, when he took up the position of the CEO of the Nuclear Energy Corporation of South Africa.

While in government Adam was responsible for driving activities such as the drafting of the Green and White Papers on science and technology; the Position Paper on the Information Society; and various statutes including the National Research Foundation Act, the National Advisory Council on Innovation Act, the Legal Deposit and the National Libraries Act and several international technical co-operation frameworks. He managed the Research and Technology Audit; Research and Technology Foresight project; reviews of 12 science, engineering and technology institutions; the restructuring of museums and cultural institutions; the distribution of budgets to science councils; an investigation into South Africa's science journals; and science and technology agreements with more than 22 countries. South Africa was recently awarded the lion's share of this project in competition with Australia. SKA is a radio telescope and must be based in an area where there is very little man made radio interference. The site chosen in South Africa is in the Karoo, north-west of Carnarvon.

Career in parastals and private sector Adam was appointed CEO of the South African Nuclear Energy Corporation (NECSA) in 2006. It has its premises at Pelindaba outside Pretoria and is established by legislation to be South Africa's main research and development organisation in the field of nuclear technology, as well as carrying out other functions on nuclear issues on behalf of the South African government. It operates the Safari Research Reactor.

SKA Adam was appointed as director designate from 1 April to 31 December 2015, and after that as director for a period of five years of the SKA South Africa, replacing Bernie Fanaroff at the end of 2015.

Family and personal life Adam was married to Liz Gavin and has two children. He is a grand nephew of Sir James Rose-Innes,