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20 September 2023 | Story Valentino Ndaba | Photo Supplied
UFS KovsieCare GBV 2023
KovsiesCare and say no to gender-based violence.

The University of the Free State (UFS) maintains a strict zero-tolerance policy towards gender-based violence (GBV), recognising it as a severe violation of human rights that detrimentally impacts physical, sexual, reproductive, mental, and social well-being on a global scale. Prevalent manifestations of GBV encompass sexual harassment (including unwanted physical contact, sexual remarks, and comments targeting individuals or groups), rape, cyberbullying, stalking, voyeurism, stealthing, femicide, intimate partner violence, and sexual assault.

#KovsiesCare GBV campaign

In response to the pressing demand for increased awareness and proactive measures against GBV across all three UFS campuses, the KovsiesCare campaign was conceived. The primary objective of this initiative is to educate, raise awareness, and equip students with resources to access information concerning GBV and other forms of violence frequently experienced by marginalised student communities, including persons with disabilities, members of the LGBTQQIAAPD+ communities, and persons from the diverse gender spectrum.

Gernus Terblanche, the Campaign Lead and Research Assistant at Kovsie Support Services within the Division of Student Affairs, elaborated on the overarching goal of the campaign, stating, "Our mission is to enlighten students about the array of available resources across our campuses and to ensure that they are well-informed about the procedures in place for addressing GBV at the UFS."

To provide valuable insights into the involvement of Support Services offices in combating GBV and violence against marginalised groups, an activation event is scheduled for 22 September 2023. This event will facilitate engagement between students and diverse stakeholders. The KovsiesCare GBV activation is made possible through collaboration with key entities such as the Division of Student Affairs, the Gender Equality and Anti-Discrimination Office, the Centre for Universal Access and Disability Support, and the Department of Protection Services.

Join the KovsiesCare GBV activation:

Date: 22 September 2023
Time: 11:00-15:00

Venue: Thakaneng Bridge, Bloemfontein Campus

For additional information, please contact Gernus Terblanche at TerblancheGIDP@ufs.ac.za.

News Archive

UFS in forefront with ASGI-SA initiative
2006-05-10

At the conceptualisation colloquium and stakeholder dialogue were from the left Dr Aldo Stroebel (senior researcher at the UFS Research Development Directorate), Dr Edith Vries (acting Chief Executive Officer of the Independent Development Trust) and Prof Frans Swanepoel (Director: UFS Research Development Directorate).

UFS in forefront with ASGI-SA initiative

Two staff members of the University of the Free State (UFS) have been appointed as members of the advisory board of the national programme for the creation of small enterprises and jobs in the second economy.  This programme forms part of government’s Accelerated and Shared Growth Initiative of South Africa (ASGI-SA).

Prof Frans Swanepoel, Director of the UFS Research Development Directorate and Dr Aldo Stroebel, senior researcher at the UFS Research Development Directorate, are working with a team of experts from the UFS on a draft implementation strategy for the national programme.  Both Prof Swanepoel and Dr Stroebel are also associated to the UFS Centre for Sustainable Agriculture.
 
“The strategy is being developed in collaboration with institutions like the Independent Development Trust, the Department of Agriculture, the National Development Agency and the Department of Trade and Industry,” says Prof  Swanepoel.  

The other team members of the UFS are Prof Basie Wessels, Director of the  Mangaung-University Community Partnership Programme (MUCPP) and Mr  Benedict Mokoena, project manager at the MUCPP.

Dr Stroebel was also member of the organising committee of a conceptualisation colloquium and stakeholder dialogue that was recently presented in Johannesburg.  The conference was attended by more than 400 delegates from government departments, higher-education institutions and civil society, including Dr Kobus Laubscher, member of the UFS Council.

The conference was facilitated by Ms Vuyo Mahlati, previously from the WK Kellogg Foundation’s Africa programme and opened by Ms Thoko Didiza, Minister of Agriculture and Land Affairs.   

“The colloquium formed the basis of an induction workshop during which a group of 150 individuals (50 teams of three) from all nine provinces, identified to initiate the implementation of the national programme, was trained and orientated towards an induction manual in collaboration with Hand-in-Hand, an Indian counterpart,” says Prof Swanepoel.

Dr Stroebel and Mr Benedict Mokoena formed part of the team to conceptualise and finalise this training manual.  The induction training includes a case study of a successful community self-help partnership model, namely the MUCPP at the UFS. Prof Wessels and Mr Mokoena are both playing a leading role in the further development of subsequent training initiatives throughout South Africa, in partnership with the relevant provincial departments.

“The involvement of the UFS in the programme is a compliment to us.  It reflects the value government sees in the use of academics and experts in the management of the ASGI-SA initiative.  It is also an indication of one of the aims of the UFS to play a role in South Africa and Africa and in the transformation and change that is taking place in our country,” says Prof Swanepoel.  

Media release
Issued by: Lacea Loader
Media Representative
Tel:   (051) 401-2584
Cell:  083 645 2454
E-mail:  loaderl.stg@mail.uovs.ac.za
10 May 2006

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