Latest News Archive

Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items
Previous Archive
15 June 2021 | Story Nombulelo Shange | Photo Supplied
A head and sholder photograph of Nombulelo Shange in front of the UFS Main Building.
Nombulelo Shange, lecturer in the Department of Sociology, says South Africa has betrayed the dreams of the youth of 1976.

Opinion article by Nombulelo Shange, lecturer in the Department of Sociology, University of the Free State.

 

Recent Stats SA statistics that put youth unemployment at 63.30% have recently re-ignited fees must fall protests because parents are feeling the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many have lost their jobs and are struggling even harder to support their children’s education and the growing costs of service delivery. These are all examples of our society’s failure to realise the hopes and dreams of the youth of 1976 who sacrificed their lives so today’s youth would not have to. The news of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange market recovering is also another example of how we have betrayed the youth who are still suffering from the socio-economic blow caused by the COVID-19 lockdown, it shows a society more concerned with capital gain over the wellbeing of the youth. When young people protest or challenge society’s contradictions they are accused of being unreasonable and spoilt and told they do not understand the economic complexities of service delivery and resource redistribution. They retreat and watch as the markets thrive in the midst of a pandemic that has exacerbated their struggles. They get painted as rude, entitled, and ungrateful when the truth is they have been more patient than anyone else

 

The youth of today is just as capable

While society undermines the youth, we forget they were victorious against the oppressive apartheid regime. They created the conditions for the freedoms we enjoy. Today’s youth is just as capable, if not more so. They show their resilience and resourcefulness by surviving in an uncaring society that is riddled with inequality and poverty. Just like the brave young people who challenged apartheid, today’s youth has it within them to address the hangover from apartheid suffered by South Africa and made worse by COVID-19. Political uprisings like the Arab Spring, which later influenced the rise of Occupy Wall Street, were sparked by smaller injustices than what the South African youth are faced with today. But our youth are still waiting patiently in the hope that our leaders will one day eventually show up for them.

The Arab Spring protests started in Tunisia in 2011, after Mohamed Bouazizi set himself on fire as a reaction to growing unemployment, corruption and poverty in Tunisia. The protests quickly spread all over the Arab world and eventually sparked global discussion and protests. At the time the Arab Spring took shape, unemployment sat at between 13.05% and 18.33% in Tunisia. South Africa’s unemployment by comparison is soaring at 32.6% and creating the most unequal country in the world, with the widest gap between the rich and the poor.

The unwillingness to address these issues disempowers the youth and society as a whole, by extension. The material conditions of the youth have been threatened. We place a lot of importance on who we are based on what we have materially. So when we don’t have we start to question ourselves, to the point of questioning our existence and sense of belonging. We see this lack of material possession as a representation of our incompleteness. And I believe that is what the pandemic has done to the youth.

 

Incompleteness in relation to blackness

In many ways it has made us feel incomplete and has added further tensions and stress to issues the youth have always been concerned with – these are problems such as access to education, healthcare, employment opportunities and the existence of systems and structures that can build their general well-being.

Bantu Biko has had a discussion around completeness which helped us to further understand the Marxist material discourse in relation to our colonial and apartheid history. Biko talks about incompleteness or the feeling of incompleteness in relation to blackness. He says when black people, especially black youth, explore their surroundings they see a lack, they see incompleteness. They look around, see their streets and find them inadequate. They look at their schools and find they are incomplete. They look around and see their homes which are often inadequate, and look at their playgrounds which are in poor condition.

As they gradually move out of their neighbourhoods, they see a shift when they enter white neighbourhoods. Suddenly the schools are beautiful, ivory towers of knowledge. People’s homes are beautiful and welcoming. Playgrounds are well-looked-after with resources that you don’t find in black communities. Even the way that structures and systems function is efficient.

What then happens is that the black individual, black community and the black youth, by extension, conclude that blackness is incomplete. If our schools, homes, streets, playgrounds, hospitals and the structures in our communities are not functioning as they should. Then something is wrong with them. And by extension because the structures belong to us, then there is something wrong or incomplete with blackness.

Well-run, well-functioning, complete and adequate white neighbourhoods and systems lead one to conclude that whiteness is associated with goodness and completeness. When we start to question our completeness we are questioning our humanity, sense of belonging and our very existence. This is dangerous. I think this is one of the biggest challenges for the youth and is reinforced by our colonial and apartheid history and a failed revolution that has done little to address socio-economic issues.

 

The youth have always led the struggle

Any revolutionary action throughout history and across the world has always had the youth at the heart of the struggle, leading that struggle. This also includes our own apartheid struggle, not just the Soweto uprising of 1976. When the apartheid system had dealt with the elders and leaders of the revolution by imprisoning them, killing them and banishing them into exile, the youth were left behind to ensure the victory of the revolution. Even the Arab Spring protests were led by the youth. The current discourse on the climate crisis is being championed by the youth while sluggish ageing leaders debate whether a crisis even exists. If we are to be victorious over the struggles caused by COVID-19, youth empowerment and engagement should be at the centre of these interventions. Youth leadership in all industries and structures is crucial. Support of youth innovations and entrepreneurship will not only end poverty, but has the potential to launch South Africa into the continent and beyond.

News Archive

Inaugural lecture: Prof Robert Bragg, Dept. of Microbial, Biochemical and Food Biotechnology
2006-05-17



Attending the inaugural lecture were in front from the left Prof Robert Bragg (lecturer at the Department of Microbial, Biochemical and Food Biotechnology) and Frederick Fourie (Rector and Vice-Chancellor).  At the back from the left were Prof James du Preez (Departmental Chairperson:  Department of Microbial, Biochemical and Food Biotechnology) and Prof Herman van Schalkwyk (Dean: Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences). Photo: Stephen Collett
 

A summary of an inaugural lecture delivered by Prof Robert Bragg at the University of the Free State:

CONTROL OF INFECTIOUS AVIAN DISEASES – LESSONS FOR MAN?

Prof Robert R Bragg
Department of Microbial, Biochemical and Food Biotechnology
University of the Free State

“Many of the lessons learnt in disease control in poultry will have application on human medicine,” said Prof Robert Bragg, lecturer at the University of the Free State’s (UFS) Department of Microbial, Biochemical and Food Biotechnology during his inaugural lecture.

Prof Bragg said the development of vaccines remains the main stay of disease control in humans as well as in avian species.  Disease control can not rely on vaccination alone and other disease-control options must be examined.  

“With the increasing problems of antibiotic resistance, the use of disinfection and bio security are becoming more important,” he said.

“Avian influenza (AI) is an example of a disease which can spread from birds to humans.  Hopefully this virus will not develop human to human transmission,” said Prof Bragg.

According to Prof Bragg, South Africa is not on the migration route of water birds, which are the main transmitters of AI.  “This makes South Africa one of the countries less likely to get the disease,” he said.

If the AI virus does develop human to human transmission, it could make the 1918 flu pandemic pale into insignificance.  During the 1918 flu pandemic, the virus had a mortality rate of only 3%, yet more than 50 million people died.

Although the AI virus has not developed human-to-human transmission, all human cases have been related to direct contact with infected birds. The mortality rate in humans who have contracted this virus is 67%.

“Apart from the obvious fears for the human population, this virus is a very serious poultry pathogen and can cause 100% mortality in poultry populations.  Poultry meat and egg production is the staple protein source in most countries around the world. The virus is currently devastating the poultry industry world-wide,” said Prof Bragg.

Prof Bragg’s research activities on avian diseases started off with the investigation of diseases in poultry.  “The average life cycle of a broiler chicken is 42 days.  After this short time, they are slaughtered.  As a result of the short generation time in poultry, one can observe changes in microbial populations as a result of the use of vaccines, antibiotics and disinfectants,” said Prof Bragg.   

“Much of my research effort has been directed towards the control of infectious coryza in layers, which is caused by the bacterium Avibacterium paragallinarum.  This disease is a type of sinusitis in the layer chickens and can cause a drop in egg product of up to 40%,” said Prof Bragg.

The vaccines used around the world in an attempt to control this disease are all inactivated vaccines. One of the most important points is the selection of the correct strains of the bacterium to use in the vaccine.

Prof Bragg established that in South Africa, there are four different serovars of the bacterium and one of these, the serovar C-3 strain, was believed to be unique to Southern Africa. He also recently discovered this serovar for the first time in Israel, thus indicating that this serovar might have a wider distribution than originally believed.

Vaccines used in this country did not contain this serovar.  Prof Bragg established that the long term use of vaccines not containing the local South African strain resulted in a shift in the population distribution of the pathogen.

Prof Bragg’s research activities also include disease control in parrots and pigeons.   “One of the main research projects in my group is on the disease in parrots caused by the circovirus Beak and Feather Disease virus. This virus causes serious problems in the parrot breeding industry in this country. This virus is also threatening the highly endangered and endemic Cape Parrot,” said Prof Bragg.

Prof Bragg’s research group is currently working on the development of a DNA vaccine which will assist in the control of the disease, not only in the parrot breeding industry, but also to help the highly endangered Cape Parrot in its battle for survival.

“Not all of our research efforts are directed towards infectious coryza or the Beak and Feather Disease virus.  One of my Masters students is currently investigating the cell receptors involved in the binding of Newcastle Disease virus to cancerous cells and normal cells of humans. This work will also eventually lead to a possible treatment of cancer in humans and will assist with the development of a recombinant vaccine for Newcastle disease virus,” said Prof Bragg.

We are also currently investigating an “unknown” virus which causes disease problems in poultry in the Western Cape,” said Prof Bragg.
 
“Although disinfection has been extensively used in the poultry industry, it has only been done at the pre-placement stage. In other words, disinfectants are used before the birds are placed into the house. Once the birds are placed, all use of disinfectants stops,” said Prof Bragg.

“Disinfection and bio security can be seen as the ‘Cinderella’ of disease control in poultry.  This is also true for human medicine. One just has to look at the high numbers of people who die from hospital-acquired infections to realise that disinfection is not a concept which is really clear in human health care,” said Prof Bragg.

Much research has been done in the control of diseases through vaccination and through the use of antibiotics. “These pillars of disease control are, however, starting to crumble and more effort is needed on disinfection and bio security,” said Prof Bragg.

Prof Bragg has been working in close co-operation with a chemical manufacturing company in Stellenbosch to develop a unique disinfectant which his highly effective yet not toxic to the birds.

As a result of this unique product, he has developed the continual disinfection program for use in poultry. In this program the disinfectant is used throughout the production cycle of the birds. It is also used to ensure that there is excellent pre-placement disinfection.

“The program is extensively used for the control of infectious diseases in the parrot-breeding industry in South Africa and the product has been registered in 15 countries around the world with registration in the USA in the final process,” said Prof Bragg.

“Although the problem of plasmid mediated resistance to disinfectants is starting to rear its ugly head, this has allowed for the opening of a new research field which my group will hopefully exploit in the near future,” he said.

 

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