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04 April 2024
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Story Lunga Luthuli
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Photo SUPPLIED
Dr Juliet Kamwendo champions gender-inclusive climate action in Africa. Her expertise at the recently held AFR100 workshop highlighted vital steps towards sustainable and equitable development.
Dr Juliet Kamwendo, Lecturer and Programme Director for Gender Studies in the Centre for Gender and Africa Studies at the University of the Free State, is spearheading efforts to integrate gender considerations into Africa's climate restoration agenda. Reflecting on her involvement, Dr Kamwendo stated, "This is particularly crucial, as women make up almost 50% of the population in Africa, and the depletion and degradation of land affect them disproportionately."
She recently served as a gender expert at the AUDA-NEPAD AFR100 workshop in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, from 25 to 29 March 2024. This initiative aims to restore forests and degraded land across Africa by 2030, with a focus on gender equality.
The workshop emphasised the integration of gender perspectives into the AFR100 project, acknowledging the disproportionate impact of land degradation on women. Dr Kamwendo's expertise highlighted the need to empower women in climate change interventions, addressing existing gender inequalities exacerbated by environmental degradation.
“Women – who are primarily responsible for household food security and water provision – bear the brunt of environmental degradation, leading to increased workloads, reduced income opportunities, and heightened vulnerability to climate-related disasters. Furthermore, the loss of forest cover and biodiversity further exacerbates the challenges faced by women, particularly in rural areas where they depend heavily on natural resources for their livelihoods,” added Dr Kamwendo.
Her participation highlights academia's crucial role in fostering inclusive and sustainable development, emphasising interdisciplinary collaboration to tackle complex environmental challenges. Through initiatives such as AFR100, stakeholders are working towards a more resilient and gender-responsive future for Africa.
Kovsies do well in SAICA QE1 exam
2010-06-10
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Students from the University of the Free State (UFS) performed well in Part I of the Qualifying Examination (QE I) of the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA).
Of the 43 Kovsie students who wrote this examination for the first time, 34 (79%) passed. The average passing rate for residential universities is 73%.
This exam sets the standard for Chartered Accountants (CA) and is written after the completion of the B Acc (Hons). The QE1 aims to assess the core technical competencies of prospective CAs.
The examination consisted of four sections, namely Auditing, Financial Accounting, Management Accounting and Taxation. The Kovsie students had the best results in the country in the Taxation section. This is an enormous accomplishment, as the average percentage of the 14 accredited universities writing the examinations for Taxation was 51.6%. The Kovsie students passed with an average of 65.38%.
Prof. Hentie van Wyk, Programme Director at the Centre for Accounting at the UFS, says he is satisfied with the results and the standard of the Kovsie students who wrote the exam. Five students who passed the QE1 exam are currently academic clerks at the Centre for Accounting. The five clerks will start their second year of practical traineeship at different companies/firms in 2011.
In order to qualify as a CA and become a full member of SAICA, the students will also have to complete a specialist diploma, pass the final examination and complete the remaining period of their practical training. Once all three these requirements have been completed, the students will qualify as CAs in South Africa.
Media release
Issued by: Lacea Loader
Director: Strategic Communication (acting)
Tel: 051 401 2584
Cell: 083 645 2454
E-mail: loaderl@ufs.ac.za
9 June 2010
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