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22 January 2020 | Story Leonie Bolleurs | Photo Leonie Bolleurs
Soil Confrence at UFS
At the Combined Congress with the theme ‘Basic and applied sciences – Fundamentals of sustainable agriculture’, were from the left: Prof Klaus Kellner, Prof Prakash Naidoo, Dr Cobus Botha from the Agriculture Research Council, Prof Vaughan Hattingh, and Mr Matome Ramokgopa.

“We are at the beginning of a new decade that will in all likelihood be pivotal for aspects such as food security, climate change, and the sustainable use of natural resources – aspects that the societies you represent are of course keenly involved with – and in terms of which you can play an increasingly valuable role.” 

These were the words of Vice-Rector: Operations at the University of the Free State (UFS), Prof Prakash Naidoo, on opening a Combined Congress of the Soil Science Society of South Africa (SSSSA), the South African Society of Crop Production (SASCP), the Southern African Weed Science Society (SAWSS), and the Southern African Society for Horticultural Sciences (SASHS).

The UFS Department of Soil, Crop and Climate Sciences is hosting the congress, with scientific content of four disciplines (soil, crop, weed, and horticulture) presented by both local and international guest speakers.

The theme of this year’s congress taking place on the UFS Bloemfontein Campus, is Basic and applied sciences – Fundamentals of sustainable agriculture.

Prof Naidoo continues: “It has been predicted that the world will need almost double the current food supply by 2050 to feed an ever-increasing world population. This clearly makes the scientific work done in the agricultural sector and the organisations affiliated with it, more vital than ever. We need to do what we can to ensure food security and sustainability.”

“A congress like yours is an opportunity to tap into the perspectives and research results of collaborators from different fields, and from different levels of skill and experience – with the aim of ultimately benefiting wider communities.”

Leader in agriculture sector

Prof Vaughan Hattingh, representing SASHS (Chief Executive Officer of Citrus Research International); Mr Matome Ramokgopa, representing SASCP (General Manager of Enza Zanden SA); and Prof Klaus Kellner, representing SSSSA (Department of Botany at the North-West University), delivered the combined opening address.

Prof Hattingh, speaking on ‘Industry–University partnership opportunity road ahead for horticultural research’, says citrus is a major horticultural product internationally and the biggest horticultural export from South Africa. The citrus industry, the second largest exporter of citrus in the world, generates R20 bn per year and is the biggest funder of research in this area. 

Prof Hattingh states that university partnerships, developing science to assist the industry, are key. “The future of horticultural industries and horticultural research at universities depends on successful university-industry partnerships.”

Mr Ramokgopa talked about ‘Innovative solutions for vegetable seed production for a growing population’, saying that Enza Zanden employed several techniques in vegetable production in response to the needs of retailers and consumers. These include smaller tomatoes (for snacking purposes), smaller leaf size of lettuce (thus a smaller area for decay), plastic-free packaging of cucumber with a longer shelf life, and more uniform onions (suitable for onion rings). 

Prof Kellner focused on ‘Scientifically sound policies and practices to ensure food security and sustainable agriculture’. He said: “It is getting warmer in Southern Africa and Europe. We need to realise it and adapt practices accordingly.”

More discussions on sustainable agriculture

Other interesting topics covered at the congress include, ‘Developing propagation technologies for indigenous plants used in the natural products industry’; ‘The influence of foliar and application rate of nitrogen fertiliser on seed and oil yield of canola’; ‘Sweet potato production in sacks: potential utilisation of limited space in rural, urban and peri-urban areas’; ‘The efficacy of postharvest wax application in the reduction of chilling injury incidence in lemon fruit’; and ‘Herbicide use within the commercial forestry sector in South Africa’.

Congress attendees can also look forward to the ‘Soil fertility and crop nutrition symposium: principles and practices’ on Wednesday 22 January 2020.

The congress kicked off on 21 January, and will come to an end on Thursday 23 January 2020. For more information on the sessions, see programme.

News Archive

Top PhD graduates hailed for excellent research in development and historical studies
2017-07-11

 Description: Top PhD graduates hailed for excellent research  Tags: Top PhD graduates hailed for excellent research  

Prof Melanie Walker and Prof Ian Phimister

The Centre for Research on Higher Education and Development and the International Studies Group celebrated its PhD graduates on 26 June 2017. The four graduates were joined by their PhD promoters Prof Ian Phimister and Prof Melanie Walker, the Dean of the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences, and their families, who came from far and wide, as well as various faculty academics and staff. Their areas of study ranged between Development Studies and Africa Studies, exploring issues that make a significant impact on the Southern African region and the continent as a whole.

In the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences, specialising in Development Studies, Dr Faith Mkwananzi, promoted by Prof Merridy Wilson-Strydom, explored the lives and educational aspirations of marginalised migrant youth, a case study in Johannesburg. She focused on the complex nature of the daily lives and experiences of marginalised migrant youth and the complexities that influence the formation and achievement of educational aspirations in contexts of vulnerability and disadvantage. The study provides compelling evidence for policy and practice that can make the lives of marginalised young migrants better.

A focus on teaching and learning in Zimbabwean universities with a focus on quality as a human development, was what Dr Patience Mukwambo, put her research efforts into. Her work makes an original contribution to national, continental, and international debates on conceptualising and operationalising the quality of teaching and learning in higher education. She successfully developed a significant alternative approach to understanding what quality in higher education teaching and learning entails, the factors that influence the realisation of quality as she theorises it, and the overall importance for human development and human well-being in universities and society.

Dr Bothwell Manyonga, who also specialised in Development Studies, examined the broader debates on the purposes and practices of teaching and learning in higher education with a case study at two South African universities, with an emphasis on principles of social justice and equity. In the thesis, he developed a model that proposes grounds for (re)thinking sociology teaching and learning to address how the capabilities approach and dominant human capital theory might complement each other in higher education and curriculum development. This takes into account both the instrumental aim of employment, which is of concern to students, as well as the intrinsic goods of critical discourse and personal development.

In the Faculty of the Humanities, with a specialisation in Africa Studies, Dr Abraham Mlombo’s doctoral research explored the relationship between Southern Rhodesia and South Africa 1923-1953, examining the ‘special relationship’ between the two countries from the former’s perspective, highlighting the complexity of the ties between them by examining (high) political relations, economic links and social and cultural ties. “It is through Abraham’s research that for the first time, black experiences of both sides of the colonial border are detailed,” said Prof Phimister.

In congratulating the graduates, Prof Melanie Walker expressed that a lot of hard work was put into training the PhD candidates and they had without a doubt produced work that was of the highest level, at international standards.

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