Latest News Archive

Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items
Previous Archive
12 January 2024 | Story Nonsindiswe Qwabe | Photo Sonia Small
Dr Grey Magaiza read more
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.

Social entrepreneurship

“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.

Community organising

“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.”

News Archive

Up to 60% of students do not have enough to eat
2013-11-15

 

15 November 2013

A report of the University of the Free State has revealed the shocking statistics that almost two-thirds of the students at the university don’t have enough money to buy food, and suffer from hunger during terms.

The study, conducted internally by the university’s Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, was a response to a growing international concern that students worldwide were not getting enough to eat. While studies were conducted in the USA and Australia, no similar research has been done in South Africa.

“There have been many studies on the impact of poor nutrition on school kids,” says Dr Louise van den Berg, Senior Lecturer in the Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, “but almost no research on university students. South Africa is, overall, a food-insecure country, and the university wanted to establish how widespread this problem is among our students.”

The reasons given by students invariably referred to a lack of money, as many students were also supporting families. Some students admitted they lacked the knowledge to feed themselves properly, some admitted to borrowing money to buy food, and some even admitted to stealing food to survive.

“This research has confirmed something we have suspected for a long time,” Dr van den Berg states.

A number of students disclosed that they were reluctant to resort to the university feeding scheme, as they were ashamed to admit they did not have money to buy food.

This study is the first of its kind in South Africa, and underlines the fact that tertiary students are particularly vulnerable when it comes to food security. Often a student has to juggle their studies with their role as breadwinner.

A tiny ray of hope to students who find themselves as food insecure, is the No Student Hungry Programme that offers a food bursary to qualifying students.

This programme, initially established by Prof Jonathan Jansen, UFS Vice-Chancellor and Rector, and now managed by Grace Jansen and Karen Buys, offers a small allowance of about R30 per day to hungry students with an average academic achievement of 60% and above. This criterion discourages entitlement thinking and builds a strong sense of responsibility on the part of those who benefit from the food bursary.

Melanie, a second-year Geography and Environmental Management student, as well as a single mother, is a beneficiary of the NSH Programme. “This bursary helps me to get a balanced meal every day. It is one less worry for me. I dream of completing my studies so that I can be independent and provide my son with the life he deserves.”

We use cookies to make interactions with our websites and services easy and meaningful. To better understand how they are used, read more about the UFS cookie policy. By continuing to use this site you are giving us your consent to do this.

Accept