Latest News Archive
Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items
29 March 2023
|
Story Samkelo Fetile
|
Photo Simba Matema
From left to right: Prof Jean Bernard Lekana-Douki, Director General at the CIRMF; Prof Francis Petersen, Rector and Vice-Chancellor of the UFS; and Prof Jean-Fabrice Yala, Scientific and Technical Director at the CIRMF.
The University of the Free State (UFS) recently welcomed senior members from the International Centre for Medical Research in Franceville (CIRMF), Gabon to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the two entities.
CIRMF is a non-profit medical research centre that was established in 1974. Its primary focus is on diagnosing infectious diseases that pose immediate problems in Gabon and the Central African sub-region. The centre is dedicated to improving public health through various initiatives, including the training of Gabonese health executives in doctoral and post-doctoral education.
“The signing of the MoU with CIRMF is a step in the right direction as the UFS continues to strengthen its footprint on the African Continent. This is seminal in driving the university’s internationalisation processes and opening an avenue to expanding research networks, especially in the African continent,” said Bonolo Makhalemele, Coordinator of strategic projects at the Office for International Affairs, UFS.
In the interest of developing broader research collaborations, the CIRMF delegation met with some UFS academics in a series of engagements, particularly in the Health Sciences Faculty and the Natural and Agricultural Sciences Faculty. “The integration of knowledge and practices that emanate from the continent provides opportunities for the co-creation of knowledge that can be shared with the rest of the world,” said Kagiso Ngake, Coordinator for Partnerships, Collaborative Degrees, and Outgoing Mobility at the Office for International Affairs, UFS.
A concrete roadmap was established to formalise the collaborations that resulted from these engagements and will commence as soon as April 2023. “We have laid a solid foundation and are on the way to a strong and rich partnership!” exclaimed Prof Jean Bernard Lekana-Douki, Director General at the CIRMF.
Prof Francis Petersen, Rector, and Vice-Chancellor of the UFS, further highlighted how the newly established partnership with the CIRMF aligns with the mandate of the UFS Vision 130 of expanding the UFS Africa research network.
Unique book on counselling for the youth
2009-03-12
 |
A unique book on the counselling of youth was recently launched by Heinemann Publishers. The book entitled Handbook of Youth Counselling, has been compiled by a team of experts mostly from the UFS. “This book is extremely relevant in the current period because observers from both within South(ern) Africa and abroad have been increasingly concerned about the South(ern) African youth,” said Prof Johnnie Hay, Departmental Chairperson of Psycho-Education at the UFS and co-editor of the book. The text is aimed at professional people in the field of mental health and focuses on children, adolescents and young adults. “The handbook gives an in-depth analysis of the most recent research done in the field of counselling and theoretical perspectives that are based on intervention. The book supports the positive psychological paradigm and takes a holistic and systemic approach as its point of departure,” added Prof Eugene van Niekerk, editor. He is also a consultant psychologist.
Here are, from the left, back: Dr Richard Nichol, Department of Psychiatry at the UFS, Prof. André Venter, head of the Department of Paediatrics and Child Health at the UFS, Ms Annette Weyers, consultant social worker; front: Prof. Hay, Prof. Van Niekerk, Dr Lyzette Hoffman, Department of Psychology at the UFS, and Dr Luzelle Naudé, Department of Psychology at the UFS. Dr Annette Prins, Divisional Head of Wellness at the Centre for Higher Education Studies and Development at the UFS and Dr Henriëtte van den Berg, Department of Psychology at the UFS, were absent when the photo was taken.
Photo: Lacea Loader
|