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Kovsie athletes elected to prominent administrative roles

09 July 2021 | Story Ruan Bruwer | Photo UFS Photo Archive

Two athletes, both employees of the University of the Free State (UFS), are now giving back to the sport in administrative roles.

Kesa Molotsane and Louzanne Coetzee are making time in their work and training schedules to serve the sports in which they have represented their country – Molotsane in cross-country and Coetzee in the 1 500 m and 800 m T11 category for athletes with a disability.

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Louzanne Coetzee Photo: UFS Photo Archive

Coetzee is again heading for the Paralympic Games in Tokyo. She is a nominee for the International Paralympic Committee Athletes’ Council. Six representatives will be chosen at the Paralympics.

Coetzee was recently elected to the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee Athletes’ Commission. She is also an athlete representative of the South African Sports Association for Physically Disabled.

Molotsane was co-opted into the National Executive Committee of University Sport South Africa as an assessor. She is also the new vice-chairperson of the Athletics South Africa Athletes Commission.

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Kesa Molotsane. Photo: Supplied

“My biggest dream is to enable athletes to dream big, and for their dreams to be recognised. I would like to see them enjoy their sport,” said Molotsane.

“I think I probably missed a lot of opportunities in my career due to a lack of funding, so I don’t want to see anyone face the same situation.”

Molotsane was also recently named as one of two ambassadors for the SPAR Grand Prix Series.

According to Coetzee, a former member of the Student Representative Council at the UFS, she believes that it is important for a current sportsperson to contribute and give input in their sport.

“I enjoy leadership, it is perhaps a gift of mine. Serving the sport in that capacity is not something that is too much of an effort or takes too much of my time. I enjoy contributing and to see something move in a direction.”

News Archive

Agriculture must adapt to change

2008-11-28

At the launch of "50 years of agriculture" at the UFS were, from the left: Mr Corwyn Botha: Chairman: Agri Business Chamber and Managing Director: Cape Agri Group, Mr Motsepe Matlala, President of NAFU, Mr Hans van der Merwe, Executive Head: Agri SA, Prof. Herman van Schalkwyk: Dean: Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences at the UFS, and Mr Sugar Ramakarane, Head: Department of Agriculture, Free State Province.
Photo: Lacea Loader

“The biggest factor driving agriculture today is change. Our major challenge is to adapt to this changing environment.” This was stated by Prof. Herman van Schalkwyk, Dean of the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences at the University of the Free State (UFS) during the recent celebration of the faculty’s “50 years in agriculture”.

Prof. Van Schalkwyk stated that the most important changes include power relationships in supply chains, consumer demand, new products and technology in agriculture, government action and developments in neighbouring states. “At the moment there is very little cooperation between small-scale farmers, small-scale farmers and commercial farmers and farmers and processors. There are also low levels of processing, low levels of value adding and a lack of creative thinking in agriculture," he said.

“This must change – we need comprehensive agricultural support and new business ideas in agriculture. We need better infrastructure, value chain financing and improved institutional support,” he said.

Speaking about agriculture and institutional co-operation in the Free State, Mr Sugar Ramakarane, Chief Director of the Free State Department of Agriculture, said that the UFS plays a vital role in bringing together organised agriculture in the province. “The responsibility of transforming our economy cannot be done by government alone. We need partners like the UFS to assist us with bringing together the two most important stakeholders of the agricultural sector, namely the National Farmers’ Union (NAFU) and Free State Agriculture. You can assist us with harnessing co-operation and providing practical solutions," he said

Mr Ramakarane said that his department is aware of the university’s good work with emerging farmers. “But, I want to encourage the university to help us with skills transfer and the development of the emerging farmers. You can play a vital role in developing a mentorship programme. Yours remains a central and critical role of being torch bearers in guiding the transformation agenda of our country," he said.

In his contribution on the challenges of small scale farmers in South Africa and the role of the university, Mr Motsepe Matlala, President of NAFU, said that unity in organised agriculture and working together with other stakeholders has become even more crucial with regard to the global challenges now faced by the country. “The university should take the lead in guiding all farmers on how to respond to, among others, the global financial turmoil and politics, developments in trade negotiations, food prices, input costs and the availability of energy," he said.

“If the UFS, and more specifically the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, is to continue to play a leading role in academia as well as in the production of research that matters to the growth and development of this country, it must adopt an approach that seeks to harness the capacity of everyone in an inclusive manner. The strides already made in this regard must be applauded,” Mr Matlala said.

Speaking on the future challenges in agriculture and the role of universities, Mr Hans van der Merwe, Executive Head of Agri SA said that South Africa has not spent money on agricultural development in a long time. “We must increase our product capacity in the agricultural sector. Universities must focus on cultivating enough expertise and the skills necessary to manage the resources and capacity needed," he said. In his view, South Africa must also focus on technological advancement in agriculture as this has also been neglected in the past. He urged universities to provide best-practice education and to look at international trends in agricultural training. “That is why we should not only focus our attention on South Africa, but on southern Africa,” Mr van der Merwe said.

In conclusion to the day’s programme, Mr Corwyn Botha, Chairperson of the Agricultural Business Chamber, Managing Director of the Cape Agri Group and former Kovsie stated that: “If you want to be an example of leadership, people around you must do better because you are there. A university should evaluate itself in this context. You cannot create solutions to problems with the same attitude in which the problems were created."

Media Release
Issued by: Lacea Loader
Assistant Director: Media Liaison
Tel: 051 401 2584
Cell: 083 645 2454
E-mail: loaderl.stg@ufs.ac.za
28 November 2008

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