Latest News Archive

Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items
Previous Archive
14 November 2024 | Story André Damons | Photo André Damons
Khoebo Innovation Promotion Programme launch 2024
Staff members from the Directorate Research Development (DRD) at the University of the Free State; Palesa Mgaga, second from right, Tebogo Machethe, centre, and Charelise van Staden, second from right, were thanked for hosting the launch of the Khoebo Innovation Promotion Programme. They are pictured with colleagues from the IDC’s Samkelisiwe Mtsewu, left, and Thato Mogopodi, far right.

The University of the Free State (UFS), represented by the Directorate Research Development (DRD), played host to the Department of Trade Industry and Competition (dtic) and the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) for the launch of its Khoebo Innovation Promotion Programme (KIPP).

The launch took place on 5 November in the Sasol Library on the Bloemfontein Campus. Tebogo Machethe, Director: Research Contracts and Innovation at the DRD, said its role was to expose the university researchers to different opportunities and programmes for funding from the IDC and the dtic. It also allowed the researchers to engage potential funders in order to understand what funders look for in a project when considering funding it.

“The aim of IDC KIPP is to assist local entrepreneurs and small to medium enterprises with commercialisation funding. The KIPP offers capital and business support to SMMEs during the early stages of commercialisation with particular emphasis on township and rural entrepreneurs,” said Machethe.

Address uneven distribution of economic development

KIPP is a dtic programme but is managed by the IDC and aims to enable early-stage innovative SMEs to penetrate the market with their locally developed innovations, resulting in a more competitive economic environment and thereby facilitating economic growth in the economy.

According to Machethe, who welcomed the guests, participants and presenters to the launch, some of the funding is geared towards the development of university innovations. Though the focus was on the KIPP launch, he continued, the discussions also encompassed other forms of funding that are available and more geared towards the university innovation.

His address was centred around the university's Vision 130 and how it supports innovation and the entire innovation ecosystem, which seeks to shift the emphasis to research impact, embracing both knowledge and societal impact. Vision 130 identifies the need for a greater focus on collaborative research, research that can attract large-scale funding in niche areas where the university is seen as a national and global leader.

Samkelisiwe Mtsewu, KIPP Account Manager at the IDC, said the programme was introduced to address the uneven distribution of economic development across the country. She said with its capacity, the KIPP programme can contribute to addressing the uneven distribution of economic development. 

News Archive

UFS introduces its Study-4-Free at Kovsies Project
2011-01-25

The University of the Free State (UFS) invites all former students who require one or two modules for the completion of a degree, diploma or certificate to complete their studies for free in 2012.

Under the university’s ‘Study-4-Free Project’, former students with a maximum of two outstanding modules may apply for the opportunity of completing those modules free-of-charge. This once-off offer covers only tuition and registration fees.
 
Students will have to meet certain criteria and apply in order to take part in this once-off ‘amnesty’ offer. Only former UFS students who were registered between 2005 and 2010 will be considered. The offer is applicable to Bachelors and Honours degrees, diplomas and certificates with the added condition that the outstanding modules are still part of the university’s current curriculum.
 
Once students are approved to take part in the project, they may only complete their outstanding modules during the 2012 academic year. If a student should fail for any reason to complete the one or two modules in 2012, they will not be able to take up the offer again.
 
Students who meet the above-mentioned criteria can apply by sending the following information to study4free@ufs.ac.za full name and surname, UFS student number, the faculty in which the student was registered and the name of the outstanding degree, diploma or certificate in question must be supplied.
 
The closing date for applications is 31 July 2011.
 
 
Media Release
25 January 2011
Issued by: Lacea Loader
Director: Strategic Communication (actg)
Tel: 051 401 2584
Cell: 083 645 2454
 

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