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03 January 2019 | Story Leonie Bolleurs | Photo Photo: Agri SA
Dan Kriek was recently appointed by the President to serve on an advisory panel on land reform.

Dan Kriek is a man who has many irons in the fire. The President of Agri SA, was in September 2018 appointed by the President, Mr Cyril Ramaphosa, to serve on an advisory panel on land reform that will support the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Land Reform.

Nevertheless, he jumped at the opportunity to serve on the Council of the University of the Free State. Kriek is also a proud former Kovsie. He obtained his BScAgric (Zoology), BScAgricHons, and MScAgric (Zoology) at the UFS. As a result, he regards it as a great privilege to be able to serve on the Council of his alma mater.

“It is now important
for me to make
our country
a better place.”
—Dan Kriek;
President: Agri SA

Great responsibility

“Apart from it being a great privilege, it is also a big responsibility,” he says. “I have good memories of my student days at Kovsies, but I also realise that times and circumstances have changed. A different approach – an inclusive approach – is needed in terms of how we are going to take the university forward.”

He believes that his knowledge of organised agriculture will come in handy. He is a proud product of the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences and believes that this is where he will especially be able to play a part as member of the UFS Council.

World-class institution

“I know what the current debates and challenges in agriculture are about. I therefore also know that we can make this Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, and indeed this university, a world-class institution.”

In addition to his duties as President of Agri SA, he also serves on the Board of Directors of the VKB Group. Naturally, he is still a cattle farmer on his farm in the Eastern Free State as well.

“There isn’t time for more at this stage. It is now important for me to make our country a better place, and I am looking forward to applying all the knowledge and experience that I have gained from my different roles elsewhere – also on the Council.”

News Archive

Q and A with Prof Hussein Solomon on ‘Terrorism and Counter-Terrorism in Africa’
2015-05-29

 

Political Science lecturer, Prof Hussein Solomon, has launched his latest book, Terrorism and Counter-Terrorism in Africa: fighting insurgency from Al Shabaab, Ansar Dine and Boko Haram, on Wednesday 26 May 2015 at the UFS.

In his book, Solomon talks about the growing terrorist threat in Africa, with the likes of Al Shabaab, Ansar Dine, and Boko Haram exploiting Africa's vulnerabilities to expand their operations. Explaining both the limitations of current counter-terrorist strategies and possible future improvements, this timely study can be appreciated by scholars and practitioners alike.

Q: If you speak of Al Shabaab, Ansar Dine, and Boko Haram expanding operations, do you see possibilities for their expansion even into South Africa, or is expansion mainly focused on northern African countries?
 
A: All three movements are operating out of their respective countries. Al Shabaab has attacked Kenya and Uganda and tried to attack the 2010 Soccer World Cup in South Africa. So yes, there is a danger that they are here and, more importantly, newer groups like ISIS are recruiting in SA already.
 
Q: If the traditional military response is ineffective, what would be a better approach then?

 
A:
What is important is that the force of arms needs to complement the force of ideas. What is being waged is an ideological battle, and, just as the West defeated Communism ideologically in the Cold War, we need to defeat radical Islamism ideologically. In addition, the military response needs to complement the governance and development responses.
 
Q: External players like the US have insufficient knowledge of the context, what would be the knowledge about context necessary for anyone concerned about the terror problem in Africa?
 
A: Allow me to give you some examples. The US trains African militaries to fight terrorist groups, but, when they return to their countries, they stage a coup and topple the civilian government. The US does not seem to understand that arming a predatory military and training them makes them more predatory and brutal, which results in civilians being recruited by terrorists, as happened in Mali. Similarly, the US sent arms to the Somali government, and members of that government sold those arms to Al Shabaab terrorists, the very people they were supposed to fight. So the Americans do not understand the criminalisation of the African state, which undermines good governance and promotes terrorism.

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