Latest News Archive

Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items
Previous Archive
13 December 2019 | Story Leonie Bolleurs | Photo Supplied
David  read more
David Shikoyeni received a master’s degree in Town and Regional Planning during the UFS December Graduation Ceremonies. He was inspired to study at the UFS after he experienced the competency of UFS graduates he worked with.

Amid hardship and difficulty, David Shikoyeni received his master’s degree in Town and Regional Planning. It was awarded to him at the December Graduation Ceremony of the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences on the Bloemfontein Campus of the University of the Free State (UFS) on 11 December 2019. 

Shikoyeni, who completed his undergraduate studies at the Namibia University of Science and Technology, had the opportunity to work with several town planners who graduated from the UFS. He was inspired by their competence, which motivated him to apply for his postgraduate studies at the UFS Department of Urban and Regional Planning.

At the time (2013) when he applied for an Honours Degree in Town and Regional Planning, Shikoyeni was working for the Walvis Bay Municipality in Namibia.

Persisting and the will to overcome

He describes the start of his UFS journey: “After a 26-hour bus ride, I arrived at the UFS for the first contact session of my honours studies. It was expensive, since I did not secure any study loans or bursaries and I had to stay in a hotel for the duration of the block classes.”

He continues: “And studying was boring since I did not study for a while. The pressure of school, work, and family life was too much to handle.”

Shikoyeni, however, believed in himself and knew that he had a goal to achieve. Seeing what he was capable of, Shikoyeni persisted and proceeded to a master’s in Town and Regional Planning. 

The impact of mining on small towns

In addition to his recent qualification, Shikoyeni believes that the UFS has equipped him with research skills. For his master’s dissertation he researched the topic: The impact of mining on the land use and planning of a small town: the case of Karibib, Erongo Region, Namibia.

Shikoyeni explains: “Mining has both positive and negative effects on land use as well as on the development of most of the small towns.”

The study was conducted in Karibib due to the town’s rich mineral resources. The area is dominated by mining activities, including gold, lithium, and marble. Development is largely dependent on the mining staff and the mines’ land use demand. As a result of consistency of the gold price and the newly opened lithium mine, the population in the area is still increasing. 

Shikoyeni found that although there are employment opportunities in Karibib, people are faced with challenges regarding property values, employment opportunities, economic growth, unaffordable housing, an increase in informal housing, and pressure on existing services.

Contributors to Shikoyeni’s study indicate that mining regions are undergoing land-use change processes that are different from what might have been expected in the absence of high-quality mineral deposits and, as such, they should be managed differently. Knowing how to do this requires a general understanding of land-use change processes that occur in these regions. 

“To prevent another ghost town, Karibib must be attractive to investors. It needs industries to generate income, transport services, trade, educational facilities, and health services. 

Shikoyeni states that most of these requirements are provided partially or entirely by local providers. “This is the role that diversification plays. Local authorities should not prescribe but encourage investors to take up such activities. They should promote all attempts to ‘go local’.

“If the government, be it at local or regional level, cannot encourage the growth of a tax-paying population, it has failed in its purpose,” Shikoyeni concludes.

News Archive

A mind shift needed in agriculture in Africa
2010-12-02

Prof. Frans Swanepoel (Centre for Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Development), Prof. Monty Jones, Prof. Driekie Hay (Vice-Rector: Teaching and Learning), Prof. Alice Pell (Cornell University, USA), and Prof. Izak Groenewald (Director of the Centre for Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Development) at the inaugural lecture of Prof. Jones as Professor Extraordinary. 
- Photo: Stephen Collett

Food stability is essential for stability in all countries around the world. Radical interventions, and not incremental changes, are necessary to end hunger and poverty in Africa, said Prof. Monty Jones, Professor Extraordinary in the Centre for Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Development at the University of the Free State (UFS), in his inaugural lecture.

Prof. Jones is Executive Director of the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA) and Chairperson of the Global Forum on Agricultural Research (GFAR). In his lecture he focused on the contribution of agricultural research to development and food security in Sub- Saharan Africa.

He said Africa is not known for good politics to promote food production. Countries under invest in research, education, knowledge management, agriculture finance, etc. There is also uncertain and restricted access to land. He specially mentioned women’s access.

Sub- Sahara Africa moved from being a net exporter of food to a net importer of food (28%). “Government spending on agriculture and transport went down and stagnated. A mind shift is necessary. Africa has the resources. We must take advantage of the opportunities,” he said, and added: “Africa must create visionary and inspirational leaders and managers who can drive developmental issues.”

Prof. Jones emphasised that fact that nutritional security is just as important as food security. The number of hungry people has grown to more than a billion in 2009. Hunger is the most severe in the developing world, especially Africa. Added to this is Africa’s population growth that i s also higher than the rest of the world. It is estimated that the demand for food in Africa will double in the next 40 years.

“Research and development alone cannot win the war against hunger in Africa. Everyone has a role to play,” he said.
– Leatitia Pienaar.

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