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12 January 2024
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Story Nonsindiswe Qwabe
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Photo Sonia Small
Since joining the UFS in 2008, Dr Grey Magaiza has worked extensively on approaches that can foster the socio-economic transformation of societies.
“The future should be one where communities can decide on their development agenda and futures. That’s the most important for me.” Dr Grey Magaiza, Deputy Director of the Centre for Gender and Africa Studies (CGAS) and Head of the Community Development programme on the Qwaqwa Campus, is passionate about capacitating communities to be agents of change and advancement. His vision for the future emphasises the empowerment of communities to take charge of their development by actively participating in decision making and the implementation of development projects that can improve their lives.
Since joining the UFS in 2008, Dr Magaiza has worked extensively on approaches that can foster the socio-economic transformation of societies. Over the years, he has crafted his research speciality into one that he is most proud of – being an interdisciplinary scientist immersed in the development of communities.
“I’m in a fortunate position of researching what I like. I say ‘fortunate’, because I’ve taken the time to understand what I’m passionate about, which is the overall field of rural livelihoods and livelihood futures – in short, community development. My research starts from an engaged university, understanding the elements that a university must use to enhance transformation and relevance to its immediate community in terms of development.”
One of the ways he has done this is by looking at social entrepreneurship as a development approach for young people in a rural setting. Through workshops with non-profit and civic organisations in Qwaqwa, Dr Magaiza has been helping these organisations to map out their needs and actively meet them through the involvement and support of external role players.
“We understand that communities are part of the national development agenda, but even that national agenda respects community knowledge and intentions and allows communities to shape their identity. A critical enabler of this is community organising. You bring back the capacity in communities to have dialogues on issues affecting them as spaces for engagement, knowledge exchange, and for people to just talk about their way forward.”
By enabling communities to define their development agenda, they can address their specific needs, challenges, and aspirations, he said. “When I look at livelihood futures, it’s quite an exciting aspect of my work – it’s like looking into a fortune tellers’ globe, because you’re not deciding for communities what they should do, but the communities themselves take those decisions.”
UFS Dean presents lecture at the University of Cambridge
2009-10-09
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Here at the main entrance (the "Chimney") of the Jesus College, after the certificate ceremony, are from far left: Prof. Barry Rider, Faculty of Law, University of Cambridge and Hosei Project leader, a group of students (Masters degree in Law) of the Faculty of Law from the Hosei University who received competency certificates after successfully completing the Hosei Summer School Project at the Jesus College, Prof. Henning, and Ms Li-hong Xing, Senior Research Fellow in the Centre for International Documentation on Organised and Economic Crime, Cambridge and Hosei Project Administrator.
Photo: Supplied |
Prof. Johan Henning, Dean of the Faculty of Law at the University of the Free State (UFS) and Head of the Centre for Business Law at this faculty, delivered three papers during this year’s Cambridge International Symposium on Economic Crime that took place at Jesus College at the University of Cambridge in Cambridge. The theme of this 27th symposium was: “The enemy within – internal threats to the stability and integrity of financial institutions”.
Prof. Henning’s presentations were about: “Conflicts of interest and duty – a persistent threat”, “Data security and identity fraud” and “The responsibility of management for the prevention and control of financial crime-related risks”.
Over and above the three papers he delivered, Prof. Henning was also part of the secretariat of the symposium and he acted as chairperson at some of the workshops.
The UFS’s Faculty of Law was once again very much involved in the organisation and participation of the symposium. Since 1992, the Centre for Business Law of the Faculty of Law has been one of a few organising institutions of this popular and well-known symposium.
Prior to the symposium, Prof. Henning also acted as guest professor at the week-long Hosei Summer School Project that is presented by the Faculty of Law of the Hosei University (Tokyo Japan) in cooperation with the University of Cambridge. He presented two extended workshops for LLM students on International Business Law and Comparative Company Law.
Prof. Henning is also a Professorial Fellow at the Jesus College and a principal lecturer in International Mercantile Law at the Hosei University Summer School.