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24 May 2022 | Story Leonie Bolleurs | Photo Supplied
Dr maria Madiope and and Dr Justina Dugbazah
Dr Marinkie Madiope, the Campus Principal of the South Campus, recently received an award from Dr Justina Dugbazah (right), the Senior Programme Education and Social Development Coordinator of the African Union Panel on Emerging Technologies.

Dr Marinkie Madiope, the Campus Principal of the University of the Free State (UFS) South Campus, recently received an award from Dr Justina Dugbazah, the Senior Programme Education and Social Development Coordinator of the African Union Panel on Emerging Technologies’ Calestus Juma Executive Dialogue (APET-CJED) programme

Dr Madiope was recognised for the work she is doing in Africa through the CJED. She collected the award during CJED’s 6th Dialogue, in the presence of more than 20 African member states. 

Fit-for-purpose policies and curricula

The focus of this event, which took place in Dakar, Senegal, was on effectively harnessing educational innovations and technologies for formal and non-formal teaching and learning in Africa.

During the dialogue, the UFS was also appreciated for its visibility and impact on the African continent and was recognised as a prospective partner and collaborator on different science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) projects, which will be discussed and confirmed later in May 2022.

Dr Madiope, the Vice-President of the Technical Working Group (TWG) of the CJED, also gave a presentation at the dialogue, speaking about the education policy implementation curriculum review in Africa. Speaking from a South African context, she highlighted the different education policies and shared her views on how the relevant role players on the continent can collaborate to ensure that policies and curricula are designed and developed fit for purpose. 

Some of the recommendations were to contextualise education, science, technology and innovation policies, and teaching methods to the African context, and have science subjects translated into local languages for easy understanding and interpretation. It was also recommended to incentivise STEM education as to encourage girl participation in STEM projects. 

In the discussion following the dialogue presentation, member states also recommended that the funding set aside for education be increased to 25% of countries’ national budget.

Supporting the development of scarce skills

With AUDA-NEPAD’s support for skills development programmes that promotes the occupational prospects of young Africans, Dr Madiope’s presentation, which highlighted some of the scarce skills on the continent, was welcomed. According to her, the Media, Information and Communication Technologies Sector Education and Training Authority (MICTSETA) has identified a number of scarce skills on the continent. These skills, aligning with the Fourth Industrial Revolution, include artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, cloud computing, data science, software development, internet of things, robotic processing automation, design thinking, and quality engineering. The university are planning to get involved in developing the skills of the youth on the African continent in terms of three-dimensional printing, drone manufacturing, and drone awareness.

• CJED is supported by APET, the African Union Development Agency, and the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (AUDA-NEPAD) strategic initiative. APET advises the African Union and member states on harnessing emerging technologies for economic development, and AUDA-NEPAD provides a platform to promote inter-country and inter-regional learning and knowledge exchange on science, innovation, and emerging technologies across Africa.

News Archive

Lots of inspiration at Autumn Graduation Ceremony
2013-04-18

 

Graduates celebrate the results of years of study at the graduation ceremony on the Bloemfontein Campus.
Photo: Hannes Pieterse
17 April 2013

Live streaming of ceremonies available from 16 April - 19 April 2013: http://www.ufs.ac.za/ufslivestreaming/

Joshua Johnson YouTube video

The university’s Autumn Graduation Ceremony got off to a vibrant start with energetic performances and inspiring messages for graduates.

Joshua Johnson, an American student who uses his talent for tap-dancing to fund his tertiary education, mesmerised the audience on the first of the four-day graduation ceremony with his story of hope and perseverance. The student from Penn State University travels five hours by bus to New York every weekend where he tap-dances on the subway trains to earn money for his tuition fees.

Delivering a keynote address, Joshua told graduates that, in order to achieve their goals, they have to understand and work diligently with the 24 hours they get to live daily. “Start with a bang and end with a bang,” he said, encouraging the audience in the nearly-packed Callie Human Centre to join him in a rhythmic tap-dancing beat.

“Don’t follow in the footsteps of someone else. Take the beat of life, but add your rhythm to it," his wise words resonating with the exhilarated graduates.

Joshua will be the guest speaker at the ceremonies on 16, 17 and 19 April 2013 and will deliver a dance item during each occasion.

Dr Khotso Mokhele, Chancellor of the University, echoed Joshua‘s message, telling graduates not to be discouraged by life’s difficulties.

“Take what you have learned over the last three or four years and use that knowledge to reach your goal,” he advised.

Prof Jonathan Jansen, Rector and Vice-Chancellor, encouraged them to continue to study. “To break the cycle of poverty, get an education, get a degree.” He told them that as graduates they are ten times more likely to get a job, with the odds rising as they continue their postgraduate studies.

Well-known radio host and Idols South Africa judge, Gareth Cliff, will be the guest speaker at two ceremonies on 18 April 2013. He will be joined by Vicus Visser, the South African YouTube singing sensation. Dubbed Bloemfontein’s Justin Bieber, Vicus and his brother Vincent will perform during these two ceremonies.

The programme for the respective ceremonies is:

Wednesday 17 April

09:30 Diplomas and certificates up to and including honours degrees in the Faculty of Education.
14:30 Diplomas and certificates up to and including honours degrees in the Faculties of Health Sciences, Law and Theology.

Thursday 18 April

09:30 Diplomas and certificates up to and including honours degrees in the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences: only Agricultural Sciences and Architecture.
14:30 Diplomas and certificates up to and including honours degrees in the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences: only Natural Sciences.

Friday 19 April

09:30 Diplomas and certificates up to and including honours degrees in the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences: all diplomas and degrees in the Faculty, except BCom and BComHons.
14:30 Diplomas and certificates up to and including honours degrees in the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences: only BCom and BComHons.

The Qwaqwa Campus’ graduation ceremony will take place on 8 June 2013. Diplomas/certificates up to and including doctorates will be awarded at this ceremony.

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