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Prof Frans Prinsloo takes on new leadership role in the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences

14 November 2023 | Story Anthony Mthembu | Photo SUPPLIED

The Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences (EMS) at the University of the Free State (UFS) has appointed Prof Frans Prinsloo as the Vice-Dean: Learning, Teaching, Innovation, and Digitalisation. Prof Prinsloo officially started his new role on 1 November 2023. “I am excited at the prospect of being able to support the academics in the faculty, enabling them to develop successful graduates who will not only sustain themselves and their families, but who can also function in and contribute positively to a dynamic world being transformed by technology,” Prof Prinsloo indicated.

What the new role entails

According to Prof Prinsloo, the role includes overseeing and providing strategic leadership regarding the teaching and learning portfolio within the faculty. The portfolio he is responsible for looks at teaching and learning policies as well as the development of new curricula in the faculty, among others. In addition, as part of his work, he indicated that, “I will also have to ensure that the faculty’s teaching approaches remain relevant and responsive to our diverse body of students’ learning needs to ensure their academic success, but also to develop essential graduate attributes. A further focus will be that the curricula of our academic programmes position our graduates to be in demand by employers and enable them to contribute meaningfully to the economy and society.”

Furthermore, Prof Prinsloo is responsible for ensuring that the academic programmes within the faculty are of high quality and accredited by all relevant top industry bodies.

The future of the faculty

As an Auditing academic for more than 25 years and Director of the UFS School of Accountancy for the past five years, Prof Prinsloo plans to use the experience he has acquired, as well as the leadership positions he has held throughout his career, to lead the faculty to new heights. “I look forward to positioning the UFS Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences as a faculty with effective and cutting-edge teaching approaches to ensure our students’ academic success, and to have quality and unique academic programmes that draw top students from across South Africa, Africa, and beyond – in line with the UFS Vision 130,” he said.

In addition, part of what he aims to accomplish in his term as Vice-Dean is working to establish the faculty and its academics as recognised thought leaders and innovators as far as teaching and learning is concerned. Prof Prinsloo also highlighted that, “We also need to ensure that the successes attained by the faculty and its staff are shared within and outside of the UFS, and as such, I will also be responsible for strategically leading the marketing efforts of the faculty.”

However, his efforts to advance the faculty are not only focused on the progress of the staff and their offerings, but also on that of the students. In fact, he indicated that, “I would also like to use this position to explore ways of further supporting our students, particularly recognising the multitude of challenges such as ineffective study skills, financial and mental wellness-related challenges that many of our students face.”

News Archive

Agriculture must adapt to change

2008-11-28

At the launch of "50 years of agriculture" at the UFS were, from the left: Mr Corwyn Botha: Chairman: Agri Business Chamber and Managing Director: Cape Agri Group, Mr Motsepe Matlala, President of NAFU, Mr Hans van der Merwe, Executive Head: Agri SA, Prof. Herman van Schalkwyk: Dean: Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences at the UFS, and Mr Sugar Ramakarane, Head: Department of Agriculture, Free State Province.
Photo: Lacea Loader

“The biggest factor driving agriculture today is change. Our major challenge is to adapt to this changing environment.” This was stated by Prof. Herman van Schalkwyk, Dean of the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences at the University of the Free State (UFS) during the recent celebration of the faculty’s “50 years in agriculture”.

Prof. Van Schalkwyk stated that the most important changes include power relationships in supply chains, consumer demand, new products and technology in agriculture, government action and developments in neighbouring states. “At the moment there is very little cooperation between small-scale farmers, small-scale farmers and commercial farmers and farmers and processors. There are also low levels of processing, low levels of value adding and a lack of creative thinking in agriculture," he said.

“This must change – we need comprehensive agricultural support and new business ideas in agriculture. We need better infrastructure, value chain financing and improved institutional support,” he said.

Speaking about agriculture and institutional co-operation in the Free State, Mr Sugar Ramakarane, Chief Director of the Free State Department of Agriculture, said that the UFS plays a vital role in bringing together organised agriculture in the province. “The responsibility of transforming our economy cannot be done by government alone. We need partners like the UFS to assist us with bringing together the two most important stakeholders of the agricultural sector, namely the National Farmers’ Union (NAFU) and Free State Agriculture. You can assist us with harnessing co-operation and providing practical solutions," he said

Mr Ramakarane said that his department is aware of the university’s good work with emerging farmers. “But, I want to encourage the university to help us with skills transfer and the development of the emerging farmers. You can play a vital role in developing a mentorship programme. Yours remains a central and critical role of being torch bearers in guiding the transformation agenda of our country," he said.

In his contribution on the challenges of small scale farmers in South Africa and the role of the university, Mr Motsepe Matlala, President of NAFU, said that unity in organised agriculture and working together with other stakeholders has become even more crucial with regard to the global challenges now faced by the country. “The university should take the lead in guiding all farmers on how to respond to, among others, the global financial turmoil and politics, developments in trade negotiations, food prices, input costs and the availability of energy," he said.

“If the UFS, and more specifically the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, is to continue to play a leading role in academia as well as in the production of research that matters to the growth and development of this country, it must adopt an approach that seeks to harness the capacity of everyone in an inclusive manner. The strides already made in this regard must be applauded,” Mr Matlala said.

Speaking on the future challenges in agriculture and the role of universities, Mr Hans van der Merwe, Executive Head of Agri SA said that South Africa has not spent money on agricultural development in a long time. “We must increase our product capacity in the agricultural sector. Universities must focus on cultivating enough expertise and the skills necessary to manage the resources and capacity needed," he said. In his view, South Africa must also focus on technological advancement in agriculture as this has also been neglected in the past. He urged universities to provide best-practice education and to look at international trends in agricultural training. “That is why we should not only focus our attention on South Africa, but on southern Africa,” Mr van der Merwe said.

In conclusion to the day’s programme, Mr Corwyn Botha, Chairperson of the Agricultural Business Chamber, Managing Director of the Cape Agri Group and former Kovsie stated that: “If you want to be an example of leadership, people around you must do better because you are there. A university should evaluate itself in this context. You cannot create solutions to problems with the same attitude in which the problems were created."

Media Release
Issued by: Lacea Loader
Assistant Director: Media Liaison
Tel: 051 401 2584
Cell: 083 645 2454
E-mail: loaderl.stg@ufs.ac.za
28 November 2008

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