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16 April 2025 | Story Precious Shamase | Photo Supplied
Qwaqwa NAS Achievements
From left to right Prof Richard Ocaya is an Associate Professor in the Department of Physics, Dr Tebogo Motsei and Dr Kamohelo Tshabalala

The Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences (NAS) at the University of the Free State (UFS) Qwaqwa Campus is celebrating a year of remarkable achievements, showcasing the dedication and brilliance of its students and faculty. The 2024 academic year has been marked by outstanding academic performance, prestigious awards, and groundbreaking research, solidifying the faculty's commitment to excellence.


Academic excellence shines bright

The faculty's commitment to rigorous academic standards has yielded impressive results. This year, four doctoral candidates successfully obtained their PhDs, contributing valuable research to their respective fields. Furthermore, the dedication of the honours and master’s students was evident in their exceptional performance. Out of 25 honours students, an impressive 11 achieved distinctions, demonstrating their mastery of their subjects. Similarly, 5 out of 10 master’s students passed with distinctions, a testament to their advanced research capabilities and academic prowess.


Dr Tebogo Motsei: A beacon of innovation and excellence

Among the faculty's many successes, the achievement of Dr Tebogo Motsei stands out as a testament to the calibre of talent being nurtured on the UFS Qwaqwa Campus. Dr Motsei, who recently graduated from the campus, was awarded the prestigious CV Raman Scholarship by the Government of the Republic of India – a recognition bestowed upon only the most promising postgraduate students.

This highly competitive scholarship, named after the Nobel prize-winning physicist Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman, provided recipients with a six-month research opportunity in India. Dr Motsei conducted her research at the esteemed Central Electrochemical Research Institute (CECRI), under the guidance of Prof Arul Manuel Stephan and Prof Sabu Thomas, Vice-Chancellor of the Mahatma Gandhi University. CECRI – one of the most difficult Indian institutes to get admitted into – is part of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR).

Dr Motsei’s research focused on sodium-ion batteries and supercapacitors with lithium-sulphur integration, resulting in significant advancements in energy storage devices. Her innovative work has the potential to revolutionise the field, contributing to more efficient and sustainable energy solutions.   

Adding to her achievements, Dr Motsei also established Lesedi Innovations Pty, a company dedicated to the manufacturing of button batteries and cells of the CR2032 and 18650 form factors. This entrepreneurial endeavour highlights her commitment to translating research into practical applications that benefit society.

For her PhD studies, she was supervised by Prof Richard Ocaya in the Department of Physics, and co-supervised by Dr Kamohelo Tshabalala, Senior Lecturer in the Department of Physics. Prof Ocaya, proud of Motsei’s achievements, believes that this fellowship not only serves as a great motivation for students – especially on the Qwaqwa Campus – but also highlights the global relevance of the UFS, particularly the Department of Physics.


A message of pride and congratulations

Prof Aliza le Roux, Assistant Dean of the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, expressed her immense pride in the students and staff. "I would like to congratulate the NAS students and staff members on this fantastic achievement – it’s a sign of people going out of their way to do their best and make their research work despite any obstacles thrown in their way. These distinctions show that we have smart, dedicated, creative people in NAS, and I’m very proud of all of them. For students, this means great opportunities ahead, and for staff, it is a sure sign that they did something right in their mentorship and teaching. Thank you to this wonderful team," concluded Prof Le Roux.

The UFS Qwaqwa Campus congratulates all the graduates, distinguished students, and dedicated staff of the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences. Their accomplishments are a testament to the university's commitment to fostering academic excellence and innovation. The faculty continues to fly the UFS flag high, inspiring future generations of scientists and researchers.

News Archive

Groundbreaking research underway to improve health in the Free State
2009-04-06

 
Some of the researchers in the project, are from the left, back: Dr Sanet van Zyl, Dr Lynette van der Merwe (both of Basic Medical Sciences), Ms Michélle Pienaar (Ph.D. student Nutrition and Dietetics), Prof. Corinna Walsh (project leader, Nutrition and Dietetics) and Dr Dries Groenewald (Chemical Pathology); front: Mr Llewellyn Fourie (M.Sc. student, Nutrition and Dietetics) and Mrs Marleze van Rhyn (Van Rensburg Patoloë).
Photo: Supplied.
Groundbreaking research underway to improve health in the Free State

Ahead of World Health Day on Tuesday 7 April, researchers at the University of the Free State (UFS) have announced that they are involved in an extensive research project to determine how life in urban and rural areas influences the lifestyle of the communities and contributes to lifestyle illnesses such as obesity, diabetes and heart diseases, as well malnutrition.

According to the researchers of the Faculty of Health Sciences at the UFS, the study in various suburbs of Mangaung is a long-term project known as Assuring Health for All in the Free State (AHA-FS) and will monitor communities every three years for a period of twelve years.

Prof. Corinna Walsh of the Department Nutrition and Dietetics is the project leader and works closely with researchers in the departments of Basic Medical Sciences and Chemical Pathology of the School of Medicine in the faculty.

A total of 36 researchers and field workers are involved in the project and information on various nutrition and health aspects are gathered. Those include diet, physical activity, health, knowledge, practices and attitude towards nutrition.

Medical examinations, anthropometric measuring (of the human body) and various blood tests will be done in the study and extensive data on 1 200 people will be available in the end.

The data gathered will be used in intervention programmes planned to prevent and address health programme in these communities.

Media Release
Issued by: Mangaliso Radebe
Assistant Director: Media Liaison
Tel: 051 401 2828
Cell: 078 460 3320
E-mail: radebemt.stg@ufs.ac.za  
06 April 2009

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