25 February 2021
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Story Dr Nitha Ramnath
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Photo Supplied
Dr Johan Coetzee of the UFS nominated as senior member of the Pan-African Scientific Research Council.
Dr Johan Coetzee, Senior Lecturer and researcher in the
Department of Economics and Finance and the
UFS Business School at the University of the Free State, has been nominated as a senior member of the Pan-African Scientific Research Council. Dr Coetzee has also been a visiting senior lecturer at the Salzburg University of Applied Sciences since 2008. He has published extensively in several local and international journals focusing on banking in particular, and recently also on the impact of fintech developments on the strategic goals of banks. Dr Coetzee’s research interests include understanding the dynamics of bank-client relationships, especially in a banking environment that is increasingly becoming digital.
The main goals of the Pan-African Scientific Research Council are to highlight excellence in research on the African continent, to promote career development of young scholars, and to encourage interdisciplinary collaboration. Members have been selected for their proven excellence in research, potential for growth, and ability to contribute to engagement with policy makers on the African continent. The council will also strive to influence evidence-based policy making in Africa, and to communicate scientific research to a wide audience through public engagement.
The council includes leading scholars in social sciences from not only across the African continent, but from top universities in the world such as Duke, Johns Hopkins, Northwestern, Stanford, and Princeton universities. Researchers from institutions such as the Bank of Canada, the World Bank, the African Development Bank, the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa further constitute the makeup of the council.
“I am extremely proud to be part of the inaugural cohort of the Pan-African Scientific Research Council, as it provides a valuable platform to share ideas with fellow African scholars who understand the economic and management challenges faced by our continent,” Dr says Coetzee.
“Africa sits with a wealth of talented scholars who merely need the platform to engage and to be part of this research council will surely set the tone for more meaningful research collaboration that solves unique African problems,” he added. “In a world entering a post-COVID-19 environment, we have an opportunity here to not only latch onto the opportunities offered by technology and all that comes with it, but also to do so in a way that showcases the quality of the Academic Project that is proudly African.”