Latest News Archive

Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items
Categories
UFS News Media Release Research
Years
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
Months
January February March April May June July August September October November December
Previous Archive
19 July 2018 Photo Supplied
AEVGI advances Next-Generation Sequencing in Africa
Prof George Armah, Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, Ghana; Prof Carl Kirkwood, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, USA; Cornelius Hagenmeier, Director: Internationalisation, UFS; Prof Gert van Zyl, Dean: Health Sciences; Dr Martin Nyaga, Senior Lecturer in the NGS Unit; Prof Joyce Tsoka-Gwegweni, Vice-Dean: Health Sciences; Dr Glen Taylor, Senior Director: Research and Development; Prof Jeffrey Mphahlele, Vice-President, South African Medical Research Council.

The inaugural edition of the University of the Free State (UFS) Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) Data and Bioinformatics Workshop, hosted by the UFS-NGS Unit in the UFS Faculty of Health Sciences, marked a new beginning for the advancement of NGS in Africa under the auspices of the African Enteric Viruses Genome Initiative (AEVGI), which was recently funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

The AEVGI will generate rotavirus genomes at the UFS-NGS Unit to investigate the long-term effects of the introduction of the monovalent RV1 vaccine in three African countries – Ghana, Malawi, and South Africa.

The workshop attracted over 90 participants from 15 national and international institutions, with organisations from seven different countries as well as company representatives attending the event. The workshop kicked off with a courtesy call to the Rector and Vice-Chancellor, Prof Francis Petersen, followed by a stakeholder meeting with the executive management of the UFS.

The funding was secured through an award to the principal investigator, Dr Martin Nyaga, and sub-awards to co-investigators, Dr Khuzwayo Jere, Dr Francis Dennis, and Dr Valentine Ndze. According to attendee evaluations of the workshop, the remarkable performance of the workshop instructors was outstanding. Through practical sessions, participants were equipped with knowledge on how to apply several tools of genetic data analysis, using the rotavirus genome as a model to construct and interpret different genomic datasets.

A total of 65 students attended the hands-on workshop, the majority of which were from South African higher-education institutions. The organisers are grateful to the sponsors, particularly to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the University of the Free State, for making the workshop a success. Whitehead Scientific and the South African Medical Research Council also played a major role in the success of the workshop. The local organising committee consisted of Dr Martin Nyaga (host, convener and chair), Dr Saheed Sabiu (secretary), and Mr Stephanus Riekert (principal ICT support).

News Archive

KPMG hotline to combat corruption and fraud at UFS
2016-01-27

Through an initiative of KPMG, the Kovsie community can now combat corruption and fraud collectively. A hotline has been established that is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

What to report

The Ethics Line is underpinned by the principles of honesty, integrity, respect, fairness, and courtesy. The following infractions can be reported:

  • Corruption
  • Dishonesty
  • Financial or other forms of fraud
  • Damage to environment
  • Discrimination
  • Health and safety violations
  • Unethical behaviour or misconduct
  • Class/exam irregularities
  • Theft
  • Sexual harassment
  • Other criminal offences

What not to report

However, the following should not be reported:

  • Employment grievances
  • Employment complaints
  • Petty arguments amongst staff
  • Personality clashes

Ethics Line Number

The KPMG Ethics Line number is 0800 00 67 04.

How the Ethics Line works

  1. Step 1: Call 0800 00 67 04 from any Telkom landline
  2. Step 2: Make your confidential and anonymous disclosure
  3. Step 3: You will be given a reference number. Keep this confidential, as you will need this if you wish to follow up on your call
  4. KPMG compiles the information, and reports to the UFS

The calls are answered, and the information recorded, by persons not employed by the UFS to ensure confidentiality. Even if you decide to supply your name, the information and your identity will remain confidential.

We use cookies to make interactions with our websites and services easy and meaningful. To better understand how they are used, read more about the UFS cookie policy. By continuing to use this site you are giving us your consent to do this.

Accept