Latest News Archive

Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items

Gift of the Givers donates food packs to the UFS

11 July 2022 | Story Lunga Luthuli | Photo Supplied

Gift of the Givers Donation to the UFS — Staff of the University of the Free State and the Gift of the Givers Foundation on the Bloemfontein Campus holding food packs as a donation to the No Student Hungry Programme.

“It is very hard for some students to make it through tertiary institutions, with most not only having to focus on studies but also having to worry about where their next meal will come from,” said Hlengiwe Nkwanyana, Community Liaison Officer of the Gift of the Givers Foundation.

She shared this when the foundation delivered food parcels on the University of the Free State (UFS) Bloemfontein Campus on 29 June 2022, as part of a partnership that started in 2020.

Nkwanyana said: “Some students at most tertiary institutions come from disadvantaged backgrounds and with the high unemployment rate, there is less support coming from families. The foundation is glad to assist, especially in alleviating poverty.”

The partnership started on the Qwaqwa Campus and has since expanded to all campuses. UFS students who successfully applied for support receive nutritional food parcels from the foundation on a monthly basis.

Annelize Visagie, Senior Officer in the Food Environment Office within the Division of Student Affairs, said the UFS has noted an ever-increasing number of students needing support. The donation from the foundation will see our students “having enough food for the third quarter”.

Visagie said: “This is part of the UFS Food Environment Strategy and the donation will be distributed to students on all three UFS campuses. We have a crisis on our hands; I call on all organisations and individuals who are able to support us to please do so.”

“Students go hungry and need our support, especially during the examination period. Without the support from foundations like the Gift of the Givers Foundation, the UFS would not have been able to sustain the support needed by the students,” said Visagie.

Nkwanyana said the Gift of the Givers Foundation “understands the plight of students, and the COVID-19 pandemic has taught us to support each other in times of need, irrespective of race or colour”.

Nkwanyana said: “The foundation is proud to partner with the University of the Free State, because we know all the donated parcels will go to deserving students. All students need to worry about now, is ensuring they pass their studies.”

News Archive

#Women'sMonth: Lack of HIV education still affects children

2017-08-17

Dr Nickie Goedhals, Senior Lecturer and Pathologist
in Medical Microbiology and Virology at the UFS.
Photo: Sonia Small

“Despite all the advances in the management and prevention of HIV, children still become infected every day, often due to lack of education and access to health care.” This is according to Dr Nickie Goedhals, Senior Lecturer and Pathologist in Medical Microbiology and Virology at the University of the Free State (UFS).

Study published in UK medical Journal
A case study she was part of and published in the UK medical journal The Lancet in 2012, demonstrates the transmission of HIV to a child through surrogate breastfeeding. This study is one of the many highlights in the young researcher’s career. She received her first rating from the National Research Foundation (NRF) in 2017 for the work she has done in Medical Virology over the past eight years.

According to the above-mentioned study, only about 1% of infants in South Africa are being breastfed by a surrogate. However, results from a study in the Free State showed that shared breastfeeding by a non-biological caregiver was the most important factor associated with HIV infection in discordant mother-child pairs. Therefore, continued education about the risk of HIV transmission is needed.

Dr Goedhals is also continuing with research on HIV by looking at HIV drug resistance. She is in the process of starting new projects focusing on HIV infection and drug resistance in infants.

PSP helped with NRF-rating
She says, although her NRF Y2-rating is the starting point of a research career, it shows that she is heading in the right direction, and it “gives access to research funds through the NRF for future projects.” Other important research she conducted was on Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever – the study for her PhD.

The Prestige Scholars Programme (PSP) at the UFS is the reason that she applied for the rating. “With all the service delivery, teaching, and administrative responsibilities of academic medicine, it is easy to lose focus. The PSP has really helped to create a focused and stimulating environment for research.” According to her, the PSP also provides access to a network of peers and senior staff at the UFS, as well as exposure to national and international experts.

Back

Economic and Management Sciences

Education

Health Sciences

The Humanities

Law

Natural and Agricultural Sciences

Theology and Religion

Open Distance Learning

Business School

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