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02 June 2022 | Story Leonie Bolleurs | Photo Supplied
Walter van Niekerk_
If you are so focused on achieving only certain goals in your life, you might miss the best opportunities, believes Dr Walter van Niekerk, who recently received his PhD in Agricultural Economics.

Being relevant in a constantly changing agricultural environment. This is one of Dr Walter van Niekerk’s biggest motivations in his working life. The place where he believes he will be able to do just that, is the University of the Free State (UFS). “The university was the best plan for my life,” he says. 

Whether it is in research or in learning and teaching, Dr Van Niekerk, Lecturer in the UFS Department of Agricultural Economics, believes that with a positive attitude and the ability to be adaptable to change, one will be able to make the most of any opportunity crossing your path. If you give 110% every day, you will be ready for any possibility. He is lecturing Agricultural Finance and Agri-business Management, focusing on agricultural business plans, to first- and third-year students, respectively. 

Contribute to findings on predation management

At the recent April graduation ceremonies, he was awarded his PhD. The title of his thesis was: An estimation of the downstream economic implications of predation in the South African red meat industry.

In his thesis, he outlined the economic impact of predation in the livestock sector and red meat industry. He believes the significant damage caused by predators cannot be controlled by man-made borders. “There is a reason for these animals' existence; they just need to be managed properly at national level by government,” he says.

The aim of his study was to contribute to and combine any findings on the predation problem, and to put these findings on a macroeconomic platform to inform government of the extent of this problem in order for them to develop strategies, policies, and mitigation methods to reduce predation and lessen the impact thereof.

Thus far, excerpts from his thesis have also been published as two articles in peer-reviewed scientific journals – a peer-reviewed journal of the National Museum, Indago, as well as the journal, Frontiers in Sustainable Supply Chain Management.

With predation being a constant point of discussion at agricultural associations’ monthly meetings, he believes that the research topic he has selected for his PhD is relevant and that the outcomes of his study will be able to make a difference in the agriculture sector. His work is more than just theory. He identified a problem – the damage that predation does to the red meat industry – and found a practical solution to it.  

Students staying relevant in a fast-changing environment 

Besides the possible impact he will have on the red meat industry, the PhD was also a means to an end – to develop himself as an agricultural economist in order to become an industry expert in his field.

He also takes his role as lecturer very seriously. It is important to him that his students, once they have completed their studies, must have an actual understanding of the field and that they must be able to stay relevant in a fast-changing environment by practically applying what they have learnt. 

In his free time, Dr Van Niekerk enjoys applying his knowledge. Besides his consultancy work with farmers, he also serves on Free State Agriculture’s Young Farmer Committee, and he is a technical adviser to the National Lucerne Trust (NLT), assisting them with their grading processes to ensure that their quality system is free of any irregularities, and that they stay relevant in the industry. 

News Archive

Teacher training key to democracy and freedom
2011-12-06

 

MEC Mr Tate Makgoe (left) with Faculty of Education’s Prof. Dennis Francis, holding the inaugural SURLEC Award. With them is Dr Dipane Hlalele.
Photo: Thabo Kessah

Universities have the responsibility to respond to the challenges that the South African education system is faced with.

This is the view of the Free State MEC for Education, Mr Tate Makgoe, during his address at the three-day First Sustainable Rural Learning Ecologies (SURLEC) Colloquium, which was recently held at the Qwaqwa Campus of the University of the Free State (UFS).
 
“Our universities must not only research the failures of our system. They must also come up with solutions.
 
“One of the questions that demand answers in our country is whether we produce quality teachers at our universities, considering our learners’ performance internationally. Our children lack the basics like grammar and yet we are 17 years into democracy. Why is their performance so poor in comparison to children in poorer countries?” asked Mr Makgoe.
 
“We must work together as a Government and universities to change this. Universities must be anchors of democracy and freedom, which is meaningless if our children cannot read and write. We must also focus on Mathematics and Natural Sciences, not forgetting to value our indigenous knowledge and games to enhance learning, especially in Mathematics,” he said.
 
According to Dr Dipane Hlalele, Head of the Faculty of Education at the UFS Qwaqwa Campus, the colloquium was held to search for best practices and success stories relating to the theme, Creating sustainable rural learning ecologies in the 21st century.
 
“Our objective was to tap into experiences and wisdom of policy makers, researchers, scholars, teachers and students in order to map a new direction in research as well as to make an indelible mark on the revitalisation of this campus,” concluded Dr Hlalele.
 
The UFS Dean of Education, Prof. Dennis Francis’ efforts to improve rural education were honoured with the first ever SURLEC Award.
 
Over 70 research papers from the universities of the Free State, South Africa, Venda, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo and the Cape Peninsula University of Technology were delivered and learners from the local schools like The Beacon, Mafube, Qwaqwa and Clubview presented their winning projects at the Science Expo.

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