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 October 2018
Conference evaluates impact of academia on public sector
From left: Prof Liezel Lues, ASSADPAM outgoing chairperson; Prof Mogie Subban, newly elected chairperson; Lechesa Tsenoli, Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly; and Dr Henk Boshoff, Free State Provincial Public Service Commissioner.
As part of a process to evaluate the impact of the discipline of Public Administration and Management on the performance of the public sector, the Association of Southern African Schools and Departments of Public Administration and Management (ASSADPAM) recently held a conference themed: ‘Back To The Future: Revisiting the discipline of Public Administration and Management for responsive and sustainable development in Bloemfontein’.

The University of the Free State’s Department of Public Administration and Management hosted the ASSADPAM at a critical time when the country is moving towards the 2019 general elections. Evaluations of this nature are essential in order to identify areas where improvements need to be intensified.

Prof Liezel Lues, ASSADPAM chairperson, says: “Public administration and management has been strongly influenced by several multifaceted political, economic and cultural forces globally and nationally. Now, in 2018, the discipline of Public Administration and Management is evaluating its impact on the performance of the public sector, realising its own responsibility but also that of citizens and public servants for responsive and sustainable development.”

Academics meet the business of governance

Some 114 delegates from 18 different institutions had the opportunity to interactively discuss 68 research papers which were presented from 26 to 28 September 2018. Burning challenges were tackled by prominent role players. Lechesa Tsenoli, the Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly presented on the Academic-Practitioner Interface, while Dr Henk Boshoff, the Free State Provincial Public Service Commissioner debated the Quality and Relevance of Research. The Quality and Credibility of Public Administration and Management training and development was the topic of a discussion fielded by Prof Thean Potgieter, the Acting Branch Head Training Policy and Planning National School of Government.

ASSADPAM honours research excellence
 
Prof Hendri Kroukamp, the Acting Vice-Rector: Academic at UFS, Prof Liza Van Jaarsveldt from the University of South Africa and Prof Michiel de Vries of Radboud University in the Netherlands co-authored the paper which scooped the prize for best conference paper. The award-winning paper titled: ‘International standards, decolonisation, curriculum considerations and public administration education’ was presented at the conference.

News Archive

Sunflowers are satellite dishes for sunshine, or are they?
2016-07-20

Eighty-six percent of South Africa’s
sunflowers are produced in the
Free State and North West provinces.

Helen Mirren, the English actress, said “the sunflower is like a satellite dish for sunshine”. However, researchers at the University of the Free State (UFS) have found that too much of this sunshine could have a negative effect on the growth of sunflowers, which are a major source of oil in South Africa.

According to Dr Gert Ceronio from the Department of Soil, Crop, and Climate Sciences at the UFS, extremely high soil temperatures play a definite role in the sprouting of sunflower seedlings. Together with Lize Henning, professional officer in the department, and Dr André Nel from the Agricultural Research Council, he is doing research on biotic and abiotic factors that could have an impact on sunflowers.

Description: Sonneblom 2 Tags: Sonneblom 2

Various degrees of deformity (bad-left
to none-right) in seedlings of the same
cultivar at very high soil temperatures.
Photo: Dr Gert Ceronio

Impact of high temperatures on sunflower production

The Free State and North West provinces, which produce 86% of South Africa’s sunflowers, are afflicted especially by high summer temperatures that lead to extremely high soil temperatures.

Dr Ceronio says: “Although sunflower seeds are able to germinate at temperatures from as low as 4°C to as high as 41°C, soil temperatures of 35°C and higher could have a negative effect on the vegetative faculty of sunflower seedlings, and could have an adverse effect on the percentage of sunflowers that germinate. From the end of November until mid-January, this is a common phenomenon in the sandy soil of the Free State and North West provinces. Soil temperatures can easily exceed the critical temperature of 43°C, which can lead to poor germination and even the replanting of sunflowers.”

Since temperature have a huge impact not only on the germination of sunflower seeds, but also on the vegetative faculty and sprouting of sunflower seedlings, Dr Ceronio suggests that sunflowers should be planted in soil with soil temperatures of 22 to 30°C. Planting is usually done in October and early November. Unfortunately, this is not always possible, as soil moisture is not optimal for growth. Farmers are then compelled to plant sunflowers later.

Impact of herbicides on sunflower growth

“High soil temperatures, combined with the herbicide sensitivity of some cultivars, could lead to the poor development of seedlings," says Dr Ceronio.

The use of herbicides, such as ALACHLOR, for the control of weeds in sunflowers is common practice in sunflower production. It has already been determined that ALACHLOR could still have a damaging effect on the seedlings of some cultivars during germination and sprouting, even at recommended application dosages.

“The purpose of the continued research is to establish the sensitivity of sunflower cultivars to ALACHLOR when exposed to high soil temperatures,” says Dr Ceronio.

 

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