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Gandhi-Luthuli PGandhi-Luthuli PGandhi-Luthuli PGandhi-Luthuli PGandhi-Luthuli Peace Chaireace Chaireace Chaireace Chaireace Chair

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UKZN signed a Memorandum ofUnderstanding (MOU) with theIndian Council for CulturalRelations (ICCR) in New Delhi in20 September.

In terms of the MOU, the IndianGovernment will sponsor the Chairof the Gandhi-Luthuli Peace Centrein the College of Humanities atUKZN. The Memorandum was

signed by UKZN Vice-Chancellor,Professor Malegapuru Makgoba;Pro-Vice-Chancellor, CorporateRelations, Professor DasarathChetty; President of the ICCR DrKaran Singh; and ICCR DirectorGeneral, Dr Pavan K Varma.

The Gandhi-Luthuli Peace Chairwas first mooted by Mrs ElaGandhi, granddaughter of MahatmaGandhi. It seeks to commemoratethose who fought against theapartheid regime and to fosterprinciples of peace and non-violence.

In terms of the agreement, theICCR will appoint an Indianacademic, at the level of SeniorProfessor, who will occupy the

Chair for a period of two years fromJanuary 2008.

The Chair is expected to benefitacademics in the field of genderand diversity studies, governanceand the politics of development,and education and rural develop-ment.

Professors Makgoba and Chettyalso explored links with a numberof universities in India. Their10-day visit was spread acrossNew Delhi, Chennai and Mumbai.The Indian Vice-Chancellors whothey met are keen to begin, and insome cases continue, a mutuallybeneficial relationship with UKZN.The success of such partnershipswill be founded on the common

values of Higher Education whichthey share with UKZN. These includetransforming the fabric of academiceducation so as to ensure thatknowledge gained from universitieshas a definite impact on society.

“Indians have ensured access forthe disadavantaged while stillraising their standards as globalcompetitors. This is being done ina cost-effective way, doing morewith less,” said Professor Chetty.

UKZN envisages that the Gandhi-Luthuli Peace Chair will be apermanent Chair, with the possi-bility of establishing a Centre forAsian Studies in the future.

- Sejal DesaiVice-Chancellor Professor Malegapuru Makgoba; Professor DasarathChetty; Dr Karan Singh; and Dr Pavan K Varma.

His Excellency,Joaquim Chissano,former Presidentof Mozambiqueand current Chair

of the Africa Forum, delivered the2007 Annual Albert LuthuliMemorial Lecture at UKZN on27 October. This is the third timethat the University has hosted theLecture.

The Lecture in the Westville cam-pus main hall was attended bymembers of the Groutville com-munity (where Chief Luthuli liveduntil his untimely death), students,academics and members of thepublic. Dignitaries present in-cluded His Excellency KarlOffmann, former Head of State ofMauritius; Chief Luthuli’sdaughter, Dr Albertina Luthuli andother members of the Luthulifamily; Deputy Minister of Com-munication, Mr Roy Padayachee,IFP Leader, Prince MangosuthuButhelezi; Chief Justice PiusLanga; Justice Zac Jacoob and MrsEla Gandhi, Chancellor of theDurban University of Technology.

His Excellency Chissano, who wasrecently awarded the inaugural

$5 million Mo Ibrahim Award forAfrican Leadership, spoke on thetopic of ‘Conflict Prevention,Management and Resolution andTransformation of Societies inAfrica today’. Noting that ChiefLuthuli was a man of peace, he saidthat without peace there cannot bedevelopment, and without develop-ment we cannot transform societiesin Africa.

He expressed his regret at the levelof violent conflict in Africa andsaid that to prevent conflictrequires co-ordinated initiativesand a clear understanding of whatconflicting countries and societiesstand to lose. “To celebrate the lifeof Chief Luthuli is to commitourselves to the pursuit of thepeaceful objectives that will bringabout the development of ourcontinent.”

The Annual Albert LuthuliMemorial Lecture is a jointinitiative organised by UKZN, theDepartment of Arts and Culture andthe Luthuli Museum.

- Sejal Desai

Chief Albert Luthuli Memorial LectureChief Albert Luthuli Memorial LectureChief Albert Luthuli Memorial LectureChief Albert Luthuli Memorial LectureChief Albert Luthuli Memorial Lecture

His Excellency Joaquim Chissano accepts a gift from UKZN Vice-Chancellor, Professor Malegapuru Makgoba.

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The ukzndaba team

Send your news to news@ukzn.ac.za

Professor Dasarath ChettyPro-Vice-Chancellor: Corporate Relations

Editorial

ACTING Vice-Chancellor Pro-fessor Pete Zacharias presented anoverview of the Higher EducationQuality Committee (HEQC) insti-tutional audit at a series of CampusForms on 10 October. The insti-tutional audit will take place from20-24 October 2008.

Describing the institutional auditperiod as a “critical date”, Pro-fessor Zacharias said the primaryobjective is self-evaluation, addingthat it gives the University anopportunity to improve its systems.He emphasised that all sectors ofthe University are under review,although the focus is on the aca-demic sector.

The Institutional Audit Co-ordinating Committee is chaired bythe Vice-Chancellor. ProfessorZacharias said that this demon-strates the University’s commit-ment to the audit process. SevenTasks Teams covering the Uni-versity’s seven strategic goals havebeen put in place.

“Audit is not punitive and not anaccreditation process, but is de-signed to be formative,” said Pro-fessor Zacharias. An audit panel ofpeers will include people fromother universities nationally andabroad. Workshops are being heldto prepare the Schools, Facultiesand support structures and reportsemanating from these will be placed

FOUR Masters students in Popu-lation Studies, in the School ofDevelopment Studies were part ofa group of more than 20 youngSouth Africans who attended a studycourse at Michigan University inthe United States recently.

Mr Thabo Letsoalo, MsKhethokuhle Nkosi, Ms CrystalMunthree and Ms Lima Mashambawere all involved in courses inStatistics, enjoying full study dayswhich began at 8h00 and finishedaround 18h00 with an occasionalSunday night lecture. An oppor-tunity was made for them to meet

Campus forums onCampus forums onCampus forums onCampus forums onCampus forums oninstitutional auditinstitutional auditinstitutional auditinstitutional auditinstitutional audit

on the University’s audit website.He said the University is required tocompile a self-evaluation report toreflect on how the audit preparationprocess has been undertaken.

During the site visit, the panel willinterview some 800 people acrossUKZN. They will also review andstudy all policies, processes andpractices relating to teaching andlearning, research and communitydevelopment, and cross referencethese to the interview data. Theywill visit areas of special interestat UKZN.

Professor Zacharias urged mem-bers of the University communityto participate in the process, sayingthat “there is no doubt that this isto our benefit. We need to be proudof the great deal that UKZN hasachieved, “ he said, adding that “wealso need to recognise that we haveto fix what needs fixing.”

Mr Glen Barnes, Director ofManagement Information, pre-sented the new resource allocationmodel (RAM), which will deter-mine how the University’s budgetis allocated across the main sectorsfrom 2008 onwards. He said thatthe Budget Working Group isaiming to have the 2008 budgetallocated to budget holders by7 December 2007.

- Bhekani Dlamini

the widow of world renownedstatistician, Professor Leslie Kish.

The students also had an oppor-tunity to take courses with variousacademics and professionals fromwell know organisations such as theUnited Nations. The courses pro-ved to be challenging but wellstructured and conducted bystatisticians and demographersfrom the best universities in theUnited States. The students said theexperience had enhanced theirdemographic skills and equippedthem with advance methods inpopulation studies.

InternationalInternationalInternationalInternationalInternationaleeeeexxxxxchangechangechangechangechange

Ms Khethokuhle Nkosi and Mr Thabo Letsoalo.

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Broadening accessBroadening accessBroadening accessBroadening accessBroadening accessDr Busisiwe Alant, lecturer

in the School of Science,Mathematics and Techno-

logy Education at Edgewood cam-pus, hosted a three-day workshoprecently for the Norwegian Councilof Universities’ Committee for De-velopment Research and Education(NUFU) Project working group.

UK Z N h a s b e e n a w a r d e dR 6 million over a five-year periodby NUFU for broadening access toa more socially responsible Scienceand Technology Education throughjoint research and capacity buildingof teacher educators at both PhDand Masters levels.

Project SUSTAIN is orientedtowards sustainable science andtechnology education. It is a co-operative project between univer-sities of the South and the North.

Dr Alant is the co-ordinator of theUniversities in the South (UiS).The Southern Universities involvedin the project are UKZN and theUniversity of Pretoria in SouthAfrica, Chancellor’s College in

Malawi and the University ofZambia.

Project SUSTAIN aims to generatetheories and research methodo-logies that explore and promotedevelopment of, and access to, asocially responsible Science andTechnology Education.

During the three-day workshop inDurban, the working group con-

centrated on the development of themodules to be taught at the firstresearch workshop of ProjectSUSTAIN at Umhlali on theKwaZulu-Natal North Coast inJanuary next year. The proposedmodules are: African Studies inScience and Technology, Intro-duction to Research and Develop-ment Studies.

- Normah Zondo

Project SUSTAIN working group (l-r) Professor Emmanuel Fabiano,Chancellor’s College, Malawi; Dr Busisiwe Alant , UKZN; Professor GilbertOnwu, University of Pretoria; and Professor Bill Kyle, University ofMissouri-St. Louis.

Dasarath Chetty Deanne Collins Bhekani Dlamini Fikisile Mabaso Vidhya Singh

Luthuli rememberedALMOST 1 000 people were treated

to an excellent presentation by His ExcellencyJoaquim Chissano, former President of Mozambique and

current Chairperson of the Africa Forum, who delivered the 2007Albert Luthuli Memorial Lecture on the Westville campus.

Chissano reminded us of the values for which Chief Luthuli lived and died,emphasised the necessity of peace as the single most important element necessary for

development, sketched the history of conflicts on the African continent and described itssocial, economic, political and human consequences. He then outlined the institutions

necessary for conflict resolution and post-conflict reconstruction. The presentation wasparticularly relevant for us as a society given the political contestations that currentlycharacterise the national landscape.

Also in the name of Albert Luthuli, the Gandhi – Luthuli Peace Chair, which will be locatedin the College of Humanities, was formally established as a result of the signing of aMemorandum of Understanding between the University and the Indian Council for

Cultural Relations. The MOU consolidates a long history of collaboration betweenthe University and our partners in India who will ensure that a distinguished Indian

academic will occupy this prestigious Chair in early 2008. Given theUniversity’s strategic goal of African-led globalisation, including the

promotion of internationalisation, the establishment of the Gandhi-Luthuli Chair is indeed a significant milestone.

3

FaceFaceFaceFaceFaceFace Face Face Face Face 2What is the UKZN Gender BasedViolence Lobby Group?

The Group is a loose coalition ofstaff and students on all five UKZNcampuses who are concerned aboutgender based violence at theUniversity. It was started two yearsago when students in the GenderStudies Programme at the HowardCollege campus came forward with

accounts of violence againstwomen at student residences.Subsequent meetings with staff andstudents revealed the extent of theproblem.

What kinds of issues does thegroup take up?

The stories that have been told atour meetings are enough to keep

During Women’s Month the UKZN Gender Based Violence Lobby Group held a demonstration on the Howard College campus. Deanne Collins finds out more about the Group and itsconcerns from Drama and Performance Studies Lecturer, Lliane Loots

you awake at night. It almost seemsthat our student residences havebecome ‘no-go’ areas. The resi-dences are far away from ourteaching spaces, and many staff andstudents have no idea what happensthere when the sun goes down. Wehave heard horrendous stories ofrape and sexual harassment ofwomen and gay-and-lesbian bash-ing. Many of these incidences arenot reported (nationally only onein nine rapes are) and even thosethat are, are not always reflected inthe crime statistics released by RiskManagement Services (RMS).

How is the University dealingwith these issues?

RMS has very good policies andprocedures in place, but studentsare not always aware of them.There is also a perception that RMSstaff are not ‘women-friendly’. Theguards are supplied by an outsidecompany, there is high staffturnover, and patriarchal attitudesoften prevent students’ complaintsfrom being taken seriously. Forexample, one student who tried to

report a sexual assault was told bya guard to “kiss and make up” withthe perpetrator. In some residencesthere are no telephones and theguards are not always around.

While there are individuals in allthe relevant divisions (RMS, Stu-dent Counselling, Students Ser-vices and Student Housing) whoare committed to finding solutions,the Group has run into a stone wallas far as the Divisional Director ofRMS is concerned. She will notengage with our Group at all. TheGroup has offered to provideexpert gender/race/sexual orien-tation sensitivity training to RMSguards free of charge, but this offerhas not been taken up.

Since RMS is at the coalface ofstudent safety, this can only bedescribed as a tragedy.

Other suggestions which the Grouphas put forward including panicbuttons in the residence rooms, andsatellite RMS offices at the resi-dences, are hampered by lack ofresources.

The Group produced a booklet,which was sponsored by the Officeof the Executive Dean of Studentsand UKZN Access, that providesessential information to students,including dealing with genderbased violence.

What can staff and students doto address these issues?

As staff and students we need toreassess the way we see our Insti-tution and to get involved in tack-ling gender based violence. Weneed to hold the student governingbodies in the residences, the SRCsand all the divisions responsible forthe wellbeing of our students moreaccountable. As a University, weneed to be careful that we don’t fallprey to gendered exclusion. IfUKZN is not a safe environment,women will not study here.

Above all, the UKZN communityneeds to affirm that democracymeans that we tolerate differencesin others, be they differences ingender, sexual orientation or valuesystems.Ms Lliane Loots.

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US$8.1 million to train Crop ScientistsUS$8.1 million to train Crop ScientistsUS$8.1 million to train Crop ScientistsUS$8.1 million to train Crop ScientistsUS$8.1 million to train Crop ScientistsTHE African Centre for CropImprovement, based on thePietermaritzburg campus, willreceive a grant of $8.1 million from

the Alliance for a Green Revolutionin Africa (AGRA). This supportwill allow the Centre a further fiveintakes of eight students a year.

AGRA has also committed $4.9million to the ACCI’s mirror imagein West Africa - the West AfricanCentre for Crop Improvement(WACCI) at the University ofGhana. Modeled on the ACCI, thisCentre aims to improve agriculturalproductivity and food security inwestern and central Africa.

The ACCI – the first of its kind inAfrica – trains African PhD stu-dents in the applied breeding ofAfrican crops for increased droughttolerance and improved foodsecurity, with the ultimate aim ofalleviating hunger in Africa.Students are drawn from a range ofAfrican countries, includingEthiopia, Kenya, Mozambique,Tanzania, Rwanda and Zambia.“Students focus on different crops,depending on what is more pressingin their countries,” said Deputy-Director of the ACCI, Dr PangirayiTongoona. Sorghum, millet,cassava, groundnut and pigeon peaare some of the crops studied by thestudents. The programme entailstwo years of training at theUniversity, followed by three yearsof research in the students’ homecountries. Currently training its 7th

cohort of crop breeders, the ACCIcelebrated the graduation of itsinaugural group of students inApril.

AGRA, founded in 2006, is apartnership between the Rocke-feller Foundation and the Bill andMelinda Gates Foundation. It iscommitted to a “Green Revolution”in Africa that will move “tens ofmillions of people out of extremepoverty and significantly reducehunger”. Director of the ACCI,Professor Mark Laing is extremelyenthusiastic about AGRA’s invest-ment in the ACCI programme:“AGRA has committed itself tocontinued funding of the researchprogrammes of our graduates afterthey get a PhD. So they are notabandoned after graduating, butinstead get the funding they needto continue their plant breedingprojects.”

Professor Laing is confident thatthe Centre will equip its studentswith the necessary skills and train-ing to successfully breed new cropvarieties suitable for the diverseagricultural environments in Africa.Some of the ACCI graduates havealready made significant progresstowards achieving this goal, suchas Dr Joseph Kamau in Kenya.

Dr Kamau, the National Co-ordinator of the Cassava Pro-gramme, has made a major break-through by developing a fastmaturing cassava crop for the

Ukambani region in Kenya. WhenDr Kamau embarked on his cassavabreeding programme, localvarieties took 18 months to harvest,were susceptible to disease andproduced low yields. “In threeyears, he succeeded in releasingvarieties which took eight monthsto harvest, were completely virusresistant, tasted better than anylocal farmer varieties, and haddouble the yield of local farmervarieties,” said Professor Laing. Headded that the results of DrKamau’s research are particularlyencouraging considering thatinternational agricultural agenciessuch as the International Institutefor Tropical Agriculture and theInternational Centre for TropicalAgriculture maintain that it takessix to eight years to breed a newcassava variety.

While Dr Kamau continues tobreed new cassava varieties, smallscale farmers around Kenya areprofiting from his agriculturaldevelopments. According to theDirector of the Kenyan AgriculturalResearch Institute’s KatumaniCentre, Dr Charles Kariuki, “thenew crop – Cassava 20451– willenhance food security amongfarmers in dry areas.”

- Vicky CrookesDr Joseph Kamau (right) and one of his technicians in front of a field trialof cassava at Kiboko Research Station, Kenya.

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MR Imraan Valodia of the School of Development Studiesis working on a project to incorporate the informal economyinto thinking about employment policy in South Africa. Heis undertaking this work in association with Professor RobDavies and Mr Stewart Ngandu of the Human SciencesResearch Council (HSRC) and Dr James Thurlow of theInternational Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).

The project has three components:

a survey of informal retailers which seeks to understandthe economic behaviour of informal retailers, especiallyin relation to the formal economy;

a social accounting matrix (SAM) to establish the flowsand interactions between the formal and informaleconomy; and

a computable general equilibrium model (CGE) forSouth Africa that includes the informal economy.

The project is funded by the Conflict and Governance Facility(CAGE) – a partnership project between the South Africangovernment and the European Commission – and theDepartment of Trade and Industry (DTI). Research teammembers recently presented initial findings to a group ofpolicymakers and research experts at a seminar at the HSRCin Pretoria.

One of the important ‘puzzles’ about the South African labourmarket is the co-existence of high levels of unemploymentand, by developing country standards, a relatively smallinformal sector. Most of the research to date on this puzzlesuggests that the unemployed must face significant barriersto entry into the informal economy. These include licencingand restrictive by-laws; the large size of South African firms;labour legislation; poor access to capital, land and credit;crime; the risk of business failure; a lack of access to start-up capital; high transport costs; and jealousy that successfulinformal entrepreneurs may face in the local community.

Mr Valodia and his colleagues argue that while these barriersare important, the conceptual approach applied by thesestudies approaches the ‘puzzle’ only from labour marketconsiderations, and therefore identifies barriers to entry asthe key consideration. Instead, they apply a generalequilibrium framework and identify the relationship betweenthe formal and the informal economy as the key issue. Theysuggest that the formal economy in South Africa has deepreach into the consumer market, including among poorhouseholds and is able to exploit economies of scale to outcompete the informal sector. Where the informal sector isable to function, it offers certain niche products – primarilyselling in very small and convenient packaging, or sellinggoods at convenient locations. Thus, the informal sector inSouth Africa is small precisely because the formal sector isso large. Any policy attempts to ease entry in the informaleconomy will have to address demand considerations, andspecifically the relationship between the formal and informalsectors.

- Indu Moodley

The informalThe informalThe informalThe informalThe informaleconomyeconomyeconomyeconomyeconomyandandandandandemploymentemploymentemploymentemploymentemploymentpolicypolicypolicypolicypolicy

T he UKZN Alumnus Associ-ation in Europe held itsbest-ever attended function

on Wednesday 3 October, when115 alumni and guests attended acocktail party at South AfricaHouse.

The event was the first function forsome years held exclusively by theAlumni Association, and was a re-sounding success. The currentChair of the Association, MsCaroline Harben, and the AlumniAffairs Manager at Public Affairsand Corporate Communications,Mr Finn Christensen, put together aninteresting evening’s entertainment.

UK alumni gatheringUK alumni gatheringUK alumni gatheringUK alumni gatheringUK alumni gatheringWorld-renowned author andUKZN alumnus Barbara Trapidorecounted her amusing and provo-cative recollections of her years atthe University, stimulating all sortsof memories among alumni in theaudience.

Darius Brubeck, well-knownSenior Research Fellow in theJazz Department at the Uni-versity, assembled a wonderfulquartet, all musicians with SouthAfrican connections, and theaudience was treated to a too-short set of South African in-spired compositions and inter-pretations.

Ms Caroline Harben, Chair of the Alumnus Association in Europe; with Barbara Trapido, Guest Speaker andalumnus; and fellow graduates.

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Short welcome addresses followedby Ms Harben, Mr Bruno van Dyk,Executive Director of the UKZNFoundation and Mr Roger Smith,Chair of the UK Trust, whichcollects money from individualstowards bursaries.

It is hoped to make this an annualevent. To be placed on the AlumnusAssociation membership list,contact Caroline Harben(harbenafrica@aol.com or 01235553 225) or Finn Christensen(christensenf@ukzn.ac.za).

- Finn Christensen

Arbour Day at EdgewoodArbour Day at EdgewoodArbour Day at EdgewoodArbour Day at EdgewoodArbour Day at EdgewoodSTAFF of the Faculty of Educationat UKZN planted indigenous treeson the campus sports grounds on11 September in support of ArbourDay. The trees were provided byMr Kevin Crampton from theHorticultural Campus Unit and theactivities were organised by theSchool of Science, Mathematicsand Technology Education(SMTE) together with the Edge-wood Environmental Forum. Dr

The Dean of the Faculty of Education and staff plant trees on Arbour Day.

Nadaraj Govender Head of theSchool of SMTE said it was ex-tremely encouraging to see selectedareas of the campus now flourish-ing with flowers, birdlife, indi-genous shrubs and trees. He addedthat indigenous trees are essentialto reduce the impact of globalwarming and soil erosion and alsoprovide a haven for animal life. Thetrees of the year for 2007 are theCommon Wild Currant (Rhus

pyroides) and Poison Bride’s Bush(Pavetta schumanniana). MsHayley Bentham the co-ordinatorfor the Arbour Day events said staffand students were also involved inthe labelling of trees. The Dean ofEducation, Professor RenukaVithal, pledged her full support forenvironmental initiatives on theEdgewood campus.

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A University Conference on“Teaching, Learning and As-sessment: from Vision toReality” took place from 26-27September on the HowardCollege campus. The aim of theConference was to create abroader awareness and visibilityfor teaching and learning as acore business of the Universityand to create a forum for thediscussion of approaches andmethods for effective teaching.

The Conference was organisedunder the auspices of the UKZNTeaching and Learning Com-mittee. Professor Leana Uys,Deputy Vice-Chancellor andHead of the College of HealthSciences, Professor Elizabethde Kadt, Executive Director ofAccess, Ms Ruth Searle,Director for the Centre forHigher Education Studies, andMs Caroline Goodier, Edu-cation Unit, Faculty of Manage-ment Studies facilitated dis-cussions at the conference. The200 delegates were drawn fromall the Faculties and all fivecampuses.

Professor MalegapuruMakgoba, Vice-Chancellor,

TTTTTeaching and learningeaching and learningeaching and learningeaching and learningeaching and learning“From vision to realityFrom vision to realityFrom vision to realityFrom vision to realityFrom vision to reality”

Professor Thandinkosi Madiba, Head of School, Surgical Disciplines; Professor Chrissie Boughey, Guest Speaker;Professor Elizabeth de Kadt, Executive Director, Access; Mrs Ruth Searle, Director, Centre for Higher EducationStudies; Professor Leana Uys, Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Head of the College of Health Sciences; Dr FikileMtshali, Senior Lecturer, School of Nursing; and Ms Caroline Goodier, Programme Co-ordinator, IntegratedBusiness Studies.

THE Second Annual Conference ofthe Population Association ofSouthern Africa (PASA) took placefrom 26-28 September in Mafikengat the University of North-West.

The Conference is a platform forsouthern African demographersand population scientists to sharetheir research work and enhancetheir networks. PASA also focuseson helping younger researchers andstudents become more familiarwith relevant research issues con-cerning the field of populationstudies and demography.

Fifteen students from the School ofDevelopment Studies at UKZN hadthe opportunity to attend theConference. The Conference gave

PPPPPopulationopulationopulationopulationopulationAssociationAssociationAssociationAssociationAssociationConferenceConferenceConferenceConferenceConference

welcomed delegates. He an-nounced that the UniversityCouncil has approved the ap-pointment of a new DeputyVice-Chancellor of Teachingand Learning.

Professor Chrissie Bougheyfrom the Centre for HigherEducation, Teaching, Learning

and Research at Rhodes Uni-versity delivered a keynoteaddress on shifts in teaching.She said that she believesteaching and learning has tobecome a priority to achieveaccess and equity, adding that inthe process it can also addresspoor results. Her observation isthat teaching has not yet

changed, despite the emphasisby government on Higher Edu-cation institutions producing asystem that will allow SouthAfrica to compete globally.

“Good, effective and fair teach-ing contributes to socialchange,” commented ProfessorBoughey. She added that “as a

country we still have appallingthrough-put and graduationrates. We need to realise thatbehind these numbers arepeople. Students are the peoplewhose families rely on them toachieve success. … We need tounderstand the social spaces thatstudents come from. We, asteachers, need to think outsidethe traditional lecture.”

Professor Boughey emphasisedthe need to rethink the role oflanguage in learning. Activelearning develops students’ability to use language to con-struct new knowledge. Com-menting on service learning, sheadvised that students should beallowed to interact with theircommunities as part of therelationship between univer-sities to communities and thestate. She emphasised the roleof web-based learning and theneed for academics to considerthe new influences on thelearning process. In her view,academics need to move from afocus on the teacher to a focuson the teaching space.

- Bhekani Dlamini

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them the opportunity to interact andmeet prominent researchers withinthe discipline. They also had anopportunity to present their re-search and receive feedback frompopulation scientists.

UKZN student Ms CrystalMunthree received an award for thebest student paper presented duringthe conference. PASA also pro-vided training for students at a oneday pre-conference workshop onresearch proposal development andtips on analysis of research resultsthrough quantitative statisticalpackages. The conference was veryinformative and insightful forstudents that attended.

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InternationalInternationalInternationalInternationalInternationalawardawardawardawardawardTHE Children’s Hospital ofPhiladelphia awarded ProfessorHoosen (Jerry) Coovadia of theNelson R Mandela School ofMedicine the Herman GertrudeSilver Award for his ground-

breaking work in helping reduceHIV/AIDS transmission frommother-to-child, especially throughbreastfeeding. Following the pre-sentation Professor Coovadiadelivered a lecture on “MedicalResearch in Poor Countries: TheClash of Science and State” at thechildren’s Hospital.

“The award presented to ProfessorJerry Coovadia is a great honourfor the Nelson R Mandela Schoolof Medicine. It not only recognisesthe work of Professor Coovadia butthrough him also the leading rolethat our medical school has inresearch in the field of HIV infec-tion and AIDS,” said ProfessorWillem Sturm, Dean of the MedicalSchool. Professor Coovadia is theVictor Daitz Professor for HIV/AIDS Research, the ScientificDirector of the Doris Duke MedicalProfessor Hoosen Coovadia.

Research Institute and Director ofthe Center for HIV/AIDS Network-ing (HIVAN).

In his lecture, Professor Coovadiarecounted how he continues tostrive for scientific breakthroughswith the help of a small team ofdedicated researchers, the guidanceof mentors and support fromaround the world. “I told of thehardships many medical re-searchers faced in South Africa,especially in the apartheid era, butdespite the racist regime we werefortunate to have relative inde-pendence to conduct research,” saidProfessor Coovadia. He also de-scribed his research into reducingthe transmission of HIV/AIDSfrom mother to newborn childthrough exclusive breast-feeding.

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UKZN achievers

T he research activities of theFaculty of Science &Agriculture’s Masters and

PhD students were showcased atthe annual Postgraduate ResearchDay held on the Westville campus.The event was dedicated to oral andposter presentations by studentsfrom across all disciplines andcampuses within the Faculty.Highlighting the diversity of re-search activities, topics rangedfrom “Factors affecting adherenceto antiretroviral therapy in sub-Saharan Africa” to “Chemical sedi-mentation on the lower Mkuzefloodplain” and “Altitudinalvariation in amethyst sunbirds inwinter.”

A panel of judges comprisingacademic staff judged the presen-tations and awarded generousprizes worth R59 000 to the topthree participants in each category.Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Re-search, Partnerships and Know-ledge Production, Professor JohanJacobs, presented the prizes to thedeserving winners.

The event was opened by the Deanof Science and Agriculture, Pro-fessor John Cooke who commentedon the newly released Science,

Engineering and TechnologyHuman Capital DevelopmentStrategy. This Government planaspires to increase South Africa’sScience PhD graduates five or sixfold by 2017, from 560 to 3 000 perannum. Cognisant of the impli-cations of this for the Faculty ofScience and Agriculture, ProfessorCooke said: “we will have to playa significant role in this expansionif the government is to comeanywhere near to meeting itstargets. Serious considerations will

PPPPPostgraduate research showcasedostgraduate research showcasedostgraduate research showcasedostgraduate research showcasedostgraduate research showcased

Winners of the Oral Presentations in the Mathematical Sciences Stream(l-r) with Professor Johan Jacobs: Mr John McGuiness (3rd); MsDikokole Maqutu (2nd); and Mr Zygmunt Szpak (1st).

have to be given to, inter alia,research infrastructure, supervisorycapacity, increasing completionrates and increasing the number ofstudents in Honors.”

The keynote address, entitled“MAD Science,” was presented byProfessor Francesco Petruccione,one of the recently announcedDST/NRF Research Chairs fromthe School of Physics. Later in theday, the Faculty’s PostgraduateStudent Society was launched

which was well supported bystudents from both the Durban andPietermaritzburg centres. ThisSociety seeks to expand post-graduate education in the Facultyand provide students with a voice.

Substantial sponsorship for theevent was received from the fol-lowing organizations: Bruker

South Africa, Capital Lab Supplies,DLD Scientific, Microsep, NorvoConstruction, Perkin Elmer KZN,School of Geological Sciences,Seitter Boyd Architects, The Com-plete Bookshop, Vivid Air Labo-ratory Equipment and FiltrationSuppliers.

- Vicky Crookes

Winners of the Oral Presentations in the Life and Environmental SciencesStream(l-r) Mr Warwick Hastie (2nd); Mr Marc Humphries (1st); MsMichelle Payne (2nd); Ms Clair Lindsay (3rd); and Professor Johan Jacobs.

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UKZN student Mr SabeloButhelezi won first prize in theessay writing competition whichwas part of the African OriginsProject and run in conjunction withthe Anthropology course, Cultureand Society in Africa.

Ms Maheshvari Naidu, co-ordinator for the African OriginsProject said that Sabelo triumphedover 450 other students to win thefirst prize of R1 000.

Second prize of R500 went toNomakhosazana Phewa while thethird prize of R300 was awardedto Bisima Makanishe.

The students were tasked withwriting an essay on the theme ofAfrican Origins in the context offossil heritage and identity con-struction.

The essay writing competition wasan immense success with the incen-tive of the prize money adding abuzz to the writing exercise. Thestudents were asked to writeacademically but to also challengetheir perspectives and writing skills

Essay competitionEssay competitionEssay competitionEssay competitionEssay competition

Lecturer in Anthropology Ms Maheshvari Naidu hands the first prizeof R 1000 to Mr Sabelo Buthelezi.

by thinking outside of the aca-demic box and being creative in theway they chose to unpack theirarguments in their essay attempts.

The South African Agency forScience and Technology Advance-

ment and the Department ofScience and Technology providedthe funding which made theinnovative writing exercisepossible.

- Article and picture: Supplied

DEPUTY Vice-Chancellor andHead of the College of HealthSciences Professor Leana Uys willreceive the Mary Tolle WrightAward for Excellence in Leadershipin November. The Award will bepresented at the Honours Society ofNursing’s 39th Biennial Conventionin Baltimore, United States.

The Award is given to individualswho impart leadership in nursingthrough visionary and innovativeapproaches and create an environ-ment that enhances the image ofnurses and the profession of nur-sing as a whole. Another criterionto qualify for the Award is that theindividual should participate in thedevelopment of nursing leaders andmust be in a leadership position.

Professor Uys is the first nurse inSouth Africa to hold the positionof Deputy Vice-Chancellor andHead of the College of HealthSciences, inclusive of the medicaland health sciences Faculties atUKZN. Since the start of her careerin the early 1970s she has held anumber of leadership positions,including President of the TauLambda-at-Large Chapter ofSigma Theta Tau International;Director: World Health Organi-sation Collaborating Centre for

ExExExExExcellence in Leadershipcellence in Leadershipcellence in Leadershipcellence in Leadershipcellence in Leadership

Nursing and Midwifery Develop-ment; Chair of the South AfricanNurses in HIV/AIDS Care; VicePresident of the World Associationfor Psychosocial Rehabilitation inAfrica; and WHO Consultant toBahrain. Professor Uys is a foundermember of the Joanna Briggs Insti-tute Collaboration Site in Durban.

UKZN Vice-Chancellor ProfessorMalegapuru Makgoba says thatProfessor Uys is “an extremelytalented person, with drive andcompassion. She is a wonderfulcolleague to work with and havearound in your team. She more thandeserves this recognition which canonly inspire her to greater things.UKZN is proud to have an aca-demic and an outstanding leader ofthis caliber.”

- MaryAnn Francis

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Professor Leana Uys.

7

UKZN achievers

PROFESSOR Trevor Anderson,from UKZN’s School of Bio-chemistry, Genetics, Microbiologyand Plant Pathology, has beenawarded the Monash UniversityScholar in Residence in EducationAward for 2007.

This prestigious position, awardedby Monash University’s School ofBiomedical Sciences (SOBS),entails a two week visit to theSchool in Melbourne, Australia inDecember 2007. ProfessorAnderson will deliver a series ofworkshops and seminars, as well ascollaborate with academic staff onissues of teaching, learning,

Scholar in RScholar in RScholar in RScholar in RScholar in Residenceesidenceesidenceesidenceesidence

Special AchieversSpecial AchieversSpecial AchieversSpecial AchieversSpecial AchieversTHE School of Languages, Literacies, Media and DramaEducation hosted a special Achiever’s Tea on 12 September onthe Edgewood campus. The focus of the event was toacknowledge all those students who obtained above 70%aggregate in any major subject offered by the School, such asEnglish, Afrikaans, Zulu or Drama Education. The recognitionof this achievement is an annual event held by the School overthe past six years.

Professor Robert Balfour, Head of School, congratulated allthe students who attended for their hard work. The event wasalso attended by the Dean of Faculty of Education, ProfessorRenuka Vithal, Professor Michael Samuel, Deputy Dean: InitialTeacher, Heads of Disciplines and around 150 students.

- Normah Zondo

T he University continued itswinning tradition at theGarden and Leisure Show

in Pietermaritzburg receiving aGold Medal for its eye-catchingand educational exhibit. Acknow-ledged as South Africa’s equivalentof the world renowned ChelseaFlower show in England, thisannual event was held at the

Gold at Garden ShowGold at Garden ShowGold at Garden ShowGold at Garden ShowGold at Garden Showshowgrounds from 5-7 October.UKZN competed against more than95 exhibitors in the Commercialcategory, impressing the judgeswith creative skills and expertknowledge of their subject matter.Plant and animal enthusiasts wereattracted to an aesthetic and well-synchronised display by variousdisciplines in the Faculty of

PhD Zoology student, Ms Joy Coleman, interacts with visitors at theUniversity’s stand at the Garden and Leisure Show.

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Professor Trevor Anderson.

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Science and Agriculture at thePietermaritzburg campus. TheSchool of Biological and Conser-vation Sciences’ display on at-tracting bats to the garden had greatappeal. It featured live bats,courtesy of the Bat Interest Group,as well as a bat counting com-petition. It also comprised inter-esting information on the origins ofplant names and a display onindigenous grasses.

Agricultural Sciences and Agri-business focused on the science ofgrowing plants, including displayson hydroponics and tissue culture.The Centre for Electron Micro-scopy featured the microscopicworld of seeds with their expertstaff on hand to answer anyquestions. Overall, the Garden andLeisure Show, which draws a widerange of people from around thecountry, provided the ideal plat-form for showcasing the Uni-versity and its diverse programmesin the Biological, Conservation andAgricultural Plant Sciences.

- Vicky Crookes

curriculum and educationalresearch. He will also be a keynotespeaker at the National Forum onEducation in Biomedical Sciences,which will be attended by Headsof departments and educationalrepresentatives from all overAustralia.

Over the past 15 years ProfessorAnderson has built up arguably oneof the world’s first scienceeducation research groups (SERG)located within a Biochemistrydepartment. He is particularlyinterested in symbolic language,including the improvement of thedesign and use of diagrams, com-

puter images and animations forenhancing the development ofstudents’ conceptual knowledgeand visual skills. ProfessorAnderson has also designed anddeveloped a resource of student’sconceptual and reasoning diffi-culties (CARD) in science, whichis aimed at developing researchcapacity in the area of studentdifficulties and teacher competenceat tertiary and secondary levels.

In selecting the Scholar in Resi-dence in Education for 2007, theMonash University EducationCommittee ranked applicants ac-cording to the following criteria:accomplishments in education;potential of nominee to act as aresource for SOBS in educationalmatters, specific suggestions foractivities while at Monash; andbreadth to engage the widest rangeof staff in SOBS. ProfessorAnderson received the highestranking, outclassing the other threenominees considered by the com-mittee. They were impressed withhis “emphasis on educationalscholarship and the importance ofdeveloping research in bioscienceeducation for those involved inteaching programmes.”

- Vicky Crookes

Natal SocietyNatal SocietyNatal SocietyNatal SocietyNatal SocietyScholarshipScholarshipScholarshipScholarshipScholarship

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UKZN Botany student, Mr IanKiepiel, has received the NatalSociety Foundation Scholarship.A Master of Science studentregistered on the Pietermaritzburgcampus, he received the award inrecognition of his seminalresearch into the plant GenusClivia.

The Natal Society Foundation isa registered educational trust thatfocuses on the promotion andstudy of the arts, sciences,literature and philosophy. Itactively encourages and supportseducation and training byawarding scholarships to excellentindividuals. It also providespromising students with ad hocstart-up financial assistance.

“In granting scholarships andother funding assistance theTrustees place great reliance on anapplicant’s academic record andon the recommendation of his/her

supervisor, principal or institutionalhead,” said Chairperson of the NatalSociety Foundation, Mr MichaelDaly.

Supervising Mr Kiepiel’s work isprominent researcher and SouthAfrican Research Chair inEvolutionary Biology, ProfessorSteven Johnson. According toProfessor Johnson the charismaticplant genus Clivia is very wellknown in horticulture, but poorlystudied in its natural environment.“Ian is seeking to understand itsreproductive biology, whichincludes research on the pollinatorsof the various species.” ProfessorJohnson is confident that MrKiepiel’s research will lead to thepublication of several journalarticles and a much improvedunderstanding of this popular andbeautiful indigenous plant.

- Vicky Crookes

Mr Ian Kiepiel.

8

UKZN achievers

TWO leading medical scientists atthe Nelson R Mandela School ofMedicine have been awardedResearch Chairs by the Departmentof Science and Technology. Theywere among 51 internationalscientists who were awarded chairsat a function held at Grootte SchuurHospital in Cape Town on 20 Sep-tember.

Professor Nceba Gqaleni has beenawarded the Chair in IndigenousHealth Care Systems and willconduct basic and applied researchinto traditional medicine andAfrican Health Care Systems.

Professor Thumbi Ndung’u wasawarded the Chair in SystemsBiology of HIV/AIDS. Hisresearch focuses on biologicalmechanisms underlying HIV/AIDSpathogenesis. He is interested in thedevelopment of biomedical inter-ventions that can be used inresource poor settings to stop thespread of HIV/AIDS.

The Research Chair in IndigenousHealth Care Systems must, throughresearch, contribute to developingscientifically proven African tradi-tional medicines as well as con-

RRRRResearchesearchesearchesearchesearchCCCCChhhhhairsairsairsairsairs

PMR awardsPMR awardsPMR awardsPMR awardsPMR awardsU KZN was honoured twice

at the ProfessionalManagement Reviews’s

Leaders and Achievers Awardsbreakfast in Durban recently.Professional Management Review(PMR) is Southern Africa’s leadingresearch-based business journaland Durban Investment Promo-tional Agency (DIPA). eThekwiniMayor, Councillor Obed Mlaba,was the guest of honour as well asthe guest speaker at the function.

The Graduate School of Businesswas given an award for being 5thout of the 12 accredited SouthAfrican Business Schools offeringthe MBA/MBL Degree, which is animprovement from last year’s 11thposition. The public and privatesector employers of MBA/MBLgraduates and students gave GSBan overall rating of 4.03 out of 5.This award was received by Pro-fessor Dasarath Chetty, ExecutiveDirector of Public Affairs & Cor-porate Communications and Pro-fessor Anesh Singh, Head of theGraduate School of Business.

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Professor Anesh Singh (holding the PMR award) with his dedicated team at the Graduate School of Business.

UKZN also received the GoldenArrow award for being “excellent- first overall” amongst institutionsof higher learning, doing most intheir business sector over the past12 months to stimulate KwaZulu-Natal’s (KZN) economic growthand development. This rating was

given by the KwaZulu-Natalbusiness local and provincialgovernment from the results of thesurvey that was conducted by PMRAfrica in July this year. Mr HollieClarkson, University Acting ChiefFinancial Officer received thisaward.

The PMR Africa awards are heldin recognition of KwaZulu-Natal’sleaders and achievers. They arebased on the results of a surveypublished by PMR in July 2007conducted by the company’s inde-pendent research unit – PMR Re-search. There were 6 243 ratings/

nominations sourced from ChiefExecutives, Managing Directorsand other senior management atKwaZulu-Natal-based companiesand Directors/ Deputy Directors ofprovincial and local governmentdepartments.

Professor Anesh Singh said, “I havea dedicated team of full-timeacademics and part-time prac-titioners who ensure that theirresearch and teaching is bothexcellent and relevant.” This isfurther supported by the FinancialMail survey where it was found thatthe teaching of Strategy andEconomics were rated among thetop three countrywide. However,one can not ignore the wonderfulsupport team who ensure that thestudent administration is up todate and that students are pro-vided with their study materialstimeously.”

- Thembeka Nyaba

tribute to the institutionalisation ofthe African traditional health caresystem.

Various projects currently exist andone of them is a United States (US)– government funded Biomedicaland Traditional Healing Collabo-ration on HIV/AIDS. This serviceoriented intervention works with alarge group of Traditional HealthPractitioners, trained at the NelsonR Mandela School of Medicine toenhance their ability to respond tothe HIV/AIDS Epidemic.

Professor Ndungu’s work is aresearch programme on humangenetic factors that influencesusceptibility to HIV infection anddisease progression. The researchfocuses on understanding inter-actions of host genetic factors withthe HIV virus, particularly in thecontext of the severe HIV epidemicin Africa. He was responsible forthe development of the first full-length infectious clone of HIV-1Cfrom Africa, a very importantreagent for detailed genetic studiesof this strain.

- MaryAnn Francis

UKZN’s Students In Free Enter-prise (SIFE) was awarded secondprize at the National SIFE Com-petition in Johannesburg.

The students presented six projectsto a panel of judges and sponsorsand won a cash prize of R10 500.They donated R2 000 of their prizemoney to the East Coast RadioWinter Warmth project. Last yearUKZN SIFE won a trip to Paris,France.

Their projects entailed studyingeThekwini Municipality’s Inte-grated Development Plan (IDP),

SIFE shining brighterSIFE shining brighterSIFE shining brighterSIFE shining brighterSIFE shining brighteridentifying problems and sug-gesting solutions. They also drewup an strategy to ensure thatprojects work. These includedrecycling in Inanda, combatingcrime at Durban’s South Beach,and access to information in theNgonyameni area in uMlazi. Thecompetition requires that theprojects are sustainable and ad-dress SIFE principles like marketeconomy, successful entrepre-neurship, financial literacy andbusiness ethics.

SIFE-UKZN projects entered forthe competition are:

Learn Entrepreneurship chal-lenge, that addresses the skillsshortage among young entre-preneurs.

The Khulanathi project, whichencourages people to start theirown businesses.

Women empowerment, edu-cating women on businessskills.

The e-Ntrepreneur project,which teaches communitieshow to use the internet andtechnology as a business tool.

The Ukukhanya project, whichdevelops entrepreneurs intownships/informal settle-ments.

SIFE-UKZN Success stories,highlighting the success ofentrepreneurs through SIFE-UKZN projects.

Mr Mandla Ndaba, UKZN StudentDevelopment Officer, won thefaculty advisor award which earnedhim a trip to the SIFE World Cupin New York, from 10-12 October.Ms Zime Ngcobo (GeneralSecretary) was also selected torepresent South Africa at the HSBCFinancial Literacy Forum in NewYork.

- Bhekani Dlamini

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SIFE members celebrate their achievements at the National Competition.

9

With sponsorship fromPfizer, the Faculty ofHealth Sciences held a

research symposium for younghealth scientists within the Faculty.Top research findings in the Disci-plines of Pharmacy and Pharma-cology, Optometry, Speech Langu-age Therapy, Medical Biochemistry,Audiology, Occupational Therapy,Sport Science, Nursing andAnatomy were presented. Under-graduate students presented in thecategories of community-basedresearch, clinically-based researchand laboratory-based research to apacked auditorium of adjudicators,academics, researchers and students.

In the category of Laboratory-based research, students from theSchool of Pharmacy and Pharma-cology won first prize for theirresearch into Stavudine. Stavudine

UKZN achievers

is a drug that is extensively used inthe treatment of HIV-infectedpatients. The study focused on theeffects of inadequate packing of thecapsules for the hot and stickyweather conditions in Durban.Experiments indicated that patientsneed to be counseled on the effec-tive storage of the drug and thatimproper storage can cause treat-ment failure and drug resistance.

The Clinical-based research cate-gory highlighted excellent researchby the School of Optometry on“The Best Moisturiser For YourCornea.” Research focused on thedysfunction of the outer lipid areasof the cornea that may lead to a dryeye. Several tear supplements (eyedrops) where used on patients todetermine which would be the bestto alleviate the symptoms. Theresults indicated that tear sup-

RRRRResearch Symposiumesearch Symposiumesearch Symposiumesearch Symposiumesearch Symposiumplements in liquid form are notclinically significant in relieving adry eye.

In the category of community-based research and also taking theoverall prize of the symposiumwere students from the Disciplineof Speech Language Therapy. Theyresearched perceptions of first yearhealth students about theprofessions of Audiology andSpeech Language Therapy. Thereis a shortage of specialists in thesetwo professions and students tendto have negative perceptions aboutthe Disciplines. The studyrecommends that the profession aswell as the University needs toimprove marketing strategies inorder to attract a greater number ofapplicants.

- MaryAnn Francis

Clinically-Based Research Category winners from the School of Optometry with Professor Sabiha Essack, Dean ofthe Faculty of Health Sciences and Mr Elijah Tjiane, Pfizer.

ComputerisedComputerisedComputerisedComputerisedComputerisedhandwritinghandwritinghandwritinghandwritinghandwritingdevicedevicedevicedevicedevice

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THE Director of the Centre forEntrepreneurship at UKZN, Pro-fessor Malome Khomo is in theprocess of being granted a Euro-pean patent for his invention, aHandwriting Recognition Method.

The device converts natural hand-writing into computer type codessuch as American Standard Codefor Information Interchange(ASCII). This process is calledhandwriting recognition. It allowsone to write as though with a penon paper into a computer.

Although his patent was originallyspecified using the Latincharacters, Professor Khomo

explains that it can be applied inother writing systems and to anyculture. “The device can recogniseany handwriting no matter how onewrites. It works for any culture andany handwriting. It will workequally well with other moreelaborate writing systems such asTamil or Hun scripts.”

He hopes to obtain venture fundingto develop the product and get itmanufactured for the wider market.Working with UKZN Innovation hehopes to commercialise hisinvention so it generates incomeand becomes sustainable.

- Bhekani Dlamini

Mr Reggie Govender, UKZN Innovation; Professor Ahmed Bawa, formerDeputy Vice-Chancellor: Research, Knowledge Production and Partner-ships; and Professor Malome Khomo, Director, Centre for Entrepreneurship.

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Convocation AwardsConvocation AwardsConvocation AwardsConvocation AwardsConvocation AwardsTWO distinguished alumni, Ad-vocate Andrea Gabriel and DrImtiaz Sooliman have received the2007 Convocation Awards in re-cognition of their outstandingcontribution to Human Freedomand Endeavour. The Awards werepresented at a ceremony to coin-cide with the Convocation AnnualGeneral Meeting on 29 October.

President and Chair of Convo-cation, Mr André Young, said theConvocation Awards are a way ofacknowledging graduates for theiroutstanding achievements in theirfields and for exceptional contri-bution and service to society.

Accepting her award AdvocateAndrea Gabriel said: “I would nothave (been successful) without thepeople around me and through theUniversity.” She added that she is

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impressed by the number of influ-ential people who are UKZNalumni, and described the Univer-sity as a “valuable centre oflearning”. She donated her prize ofR500 to the Gift of the Givers tobe used to help those in need.

Advocate Gabriel was born and grewup in Pietermaritzburg. Her familywas concerned with fighting injusticeand poverty, which influenced herto commit herself to public interestlegal work and to serving the poorand the marginalised.

Advocate Gabriel has a BA and anLLB from UKZN. She laterobtained a Fulbright scholarship toread for a Master of Laws degreein Constitutional and HumanRights Law at Georgetown Uni-versity School of Law inWashington DC. She attained an

MPhil from the National LawSchool of India in Bangalore whereshe wrote her dissertation on socio-economic justice.

Dr Imtiaz Sooliman lives by themantra: “Best among people arethose who benefit mankind.” Hebelieves that all of humankind isone, regardless of spiritualdifferences: “Real spiritual peopledon’t preach war … real religionpromotes love, tolerance andpeace,” he said. He added that heis “confident that the University isgoing places … I am proud to beattached to this University.”

Dr Sooliman was born in Potchef-stroom, North West Province. Hequalified as a medical doctor at theUKZN Medical School in 1984.Following the advice of hisspiritual teacher, Dr Sooliman

founded the Gift of the GiversFoundation in 1992. The oergani-sation provides rapid, large scaleand innovative responses tonatural and man-made disasters.It is concerned with alleviatingphysical suffering, material needsand also emotional suffering.

Back (l-r) Mr Sifiso Mncube, Dr Thavan Padayachi, Mr Sandile Ngcobo,Mr Alastair Dickson SC, Professor Sheryl Hendriks, Dr Beki Hlatshwayo,Ms Raylene Captain-Hasthibeer and Mr Andre Young.Front (l-r) Advocate Andrea Gabriel and Dr Imtiaz Sooliman.

UKZN alumnus and member of theConvocation Executive Com-mittee, Dr Beki Hlatshwayo pre-sented the Awards together with MrYoung.

- Bhekani Dlamini

10

UKZN hosted two in-augural lectures inOctober.

Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Headof the College of Humanities,Professor Fikile Mazibuko said:“The inaugural lecture is an impor-tant ritual in the life of an academicinstitution. It provides the Inaugu-rate with an opportunity to presenthis or her peers with what his orher intellectual and academic foot-prints on the discipline will be.”She added that that the inaugurallecture is an opportunity for theUniversity to acknowledge publiclyand proudly the excellent achieve-ments of Inaugurates, and their

Inaugural LecturesInaugural LecturesInaugural LecturesInaugural LecturesInaugural Lecturescontribution not only to the intel-lectual life of this Institution, butmore broadly to the intellectuallifer of society.

Director of the Centre for CivilSociety on the Howard Collegecampus Professor Patrick Bondpresented a lecture on “GlobalCivil Society Strategies for SocialJustice” on 10 October.

Professor Bond explored the possi-bility of justice movements formingstrong global links. While there aresharp differences of approaches,global justice campaigns havebecome a much more coherentforce since the IMF Riots during

the 1980s. Fusing these movementswith anti-war movements is also ahigh priority. But doing so willrequire much more explicit atten-tion to distinctions between ‘refor-mist’ and ‘non-reformist’ reforms,in the spirit of the late French socialstrategist Andre Gorz.

Professor Bond is a politicaleconomist with longstandingresearch interests, and NGO workin urban communities and withglobal justice movements in severalcountries. He worked at Johannes-burg NGOs during the 1990s, andseveral social justice agencies inWashington and Philadelphiaduring the 1980s. He was educated

Professor Eddie Mhlanga. Professor Patrick Bond.

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at Swarthmore College Departmentof Economics, the Wharton Schoolof Finance at the University ofPennsylvania and the John HopkinsUniversity Department of Geo-graphy and Environmental Engin-eering where he received his PhDin 1993.

Head of the School of Maternal,Child and Women’s Health at theNelson R Mandela School ofMedicine Professor Eddie Mhlangapresented his inaugural lecture on12 October on “Nation’s FutureSecured Today: Women’s Health.”

Professor Mhlanga voiced hisconcern about the preventable

deaths of women while givingbirth. He pointed out that womenare at the centre of development as“if you educate a woman youeducate a nation.” He challengedthe current government policy oftreatment for prevention of motherto child transmission of HIV whichsaves the baby but ignores whathappens to the mother. He cited anumber of threats to women’shealth which include healthilliteracy, sexual violence, HIV,chronic diseases, and many lifethreatening factors.

Professor Mhlanga obtained hisMBChB at the University of Natalin 1977, and worked at McCordHospital, King Edward VIII Hos-pital and Tintswalo Hospital beforereturning to specialise in 1982.

He obtained a Diploma in Maternaland Child Health in 1985, and aFellowship of the College ofObstetricians and Gynaecologistsin 1987. In 1988 he returned to hishome as the only specialistobstetrician and gynaecologist ingovernment employ for sevenhospitals.

He joined the Department ofObstetrics and Gynaecology at theNelson R Mandela School ofMedicine in 2004. He is alsoAdjunct Member of Faculty at theUniversity of North Carolina atChapel Hill.

- Bhekani Dlamini

College boasts new RCollege boasts new RCollege boasts new RCollege boasts new RCollege boasts new Research Chairsesearch Chairsesearch Chairsesearch Chairsesearch ChairsTHE College of Agriculture, En-gineering and Science is proud ofthe addition of two new ResearchChairs, announced recently by theDepartment of Science andTechnology in an effort “to turnSouth Africa’s brain drain to braingain.” Professor DereshRamjugernath from the School ofChemical Engineering and Pro-fessor Francesco Petruccione fromthe School of Physics will join theCollege’s existing Research Chairs,

Professor Steve Johnson and Pro-fessor Sunil Maharaj.

Professor Ramjugernath, Head ofthe School of Chemical Engin-eering, has been awarded theResearch Chair in Fluorine ProcessEngineering and SeparationTechnology. He will contribute tothe Government’s FluorineExpansion Initiative (FEI) byresearching and developing SouthAfrica’s fluorinated products, eg

pharmaceuticals and agro-chemicals. Despite South Africapossessing the second to largestsupply of fluorspar, it currentlyimports all its fluorinated products,said Professor Ramjugernath. TheGovernment aims to develop thisindustry by diligently pursuing theFEI. “We expect substantial growthin this sector in the next few years,”said Minister of Science andTechnology, Mr Mosibudi

Mangena. Professor Ramjugernath’sactivities as the Chair will be directlylinked with two major companies:Nuclear Energy Corporation ofSouth Africa and SASOL.

Director of UKZN’s ResearchGroup on Theoretical Physics,Professor Petruccione will occupythe Research Chair in QuantumInformation Processing and Com-munication. Professor Petruccione

is a highly acclaimed researcherand the author of several books. Hisresearch interests include openquantum systems, decoherence,quantum information processingand communication, statisticalphysics and Monte Carlo methods.

The South African Research ChairsInitiative, launched in December2006, aims to create 210 researchchairs by 2010 covering a widearray of disciplines. “The main aimof the initiative is to grow high-level research capital and pro-duction capacity in the highereducation sector.” So far, 72appointments have been made in 14universities. Although approxi-mately two-thirds of the incum-bents are white, the initiative seeksto fill 60% of the Chairs with blackresearchers. There is also a targetto ensure that half the appointeesare women. It is estimated that theResearch Chairs will cost the StateR170 million over the next fiveyears.

- Vicky CrookesProfessor Deresh Ramjugernath.

Professor Francesco Petruccione.

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11

AMemorial Lecture tocommemorate the life ofBlack Consciousness

leader, Mr Stephen Bantu Bikowho was murdered by the apartheidpolice 30 years ago, was held at theNelson R Mandela School ofMedicine on 27 September.

Mr Biko was a student at theUniversity of Natal’s MedicalSchool, President of the SouthAfrica Student’s Organisation(SASO), founder member of theBlack People’s Convention andchief architect of the philosophy ofBlack Consciousness. TheMemorial Lecture was delivered byProfessor Mbulelo Mzamane,

BikBikBikBikBiko Memorial Lectureo Memorial Lectureo Memorial Lectureo Memorial Lectureo Memorial LectureDirector of UKZN’s Centre forAfrican Literary Studies and DrBoyce Baloyi, both personalfriends of Mr Biko.

Reflecting on the development ofthe Black Consciousness Move-ment, Professor Mzamane said:“The value Africans on the con-tinent attach to African Con-sciousness and Renaissance isenormous. (As) President Mbeki(has said) … we deprive ourselvesas we do not honour our ownprophets.”

He also quoted Mr NelsonMandela, who spoke at a previouscommemorative lecture for Mr

Biko: “As we now increasinglyspeak and work for an AfricanRenaissance, the thoughts, workand force of Mr Steve Biko is asstrong as when he lived. That forcespoke of radically changing theconsciousness of our people, of theshape of our history and the rest ofhumanity.”

Dr Baloyi spoke of his fondmemories of his former classmate.He added that the best way to paytribute to him is to “plough backinto the communities we comefrom.”

- MaryAnn Francis

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Professor Rajen Naidoo, Ms Zanele Bikitsha, Professor Mbulelo Mzamane, Mrs Mzamane, Dr Boyce Baloyi, DrLungile Bhengu, and Professor Nceba Gcaleni.

Chief Justice Pius Langa recentlyaddressed staff and students of theFaculty of Law on “The role of theSouth African Constitution inbuilding a more equal and humanesociety.” Justice Langa, who was aguest of the Law Students’ Council,is the Chief Justice of the Con-stitutional Court of South Africa.

LLLLLecture on SA Constitutionecture on SA Constitutionecture on SA Constitutionecture on SA Constitutionecture on SA ConstitutionHis visit on 9 October attracted anexcellent audience of staff, studentsand journalists.

Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Headof the College of Law and Manage-ment Studies, Professor JohnMubangizi officially opened thelecture, applauding students for

inviting Justice Langa. JusticeLanga said the topic focused onhow South Africa could use theConstitution to transform society.He emphasised that the Consti-tutional Court had a transfor-mational goal to remove allremnants of apartheid laws. Heexplained that a humane societyreferred to a society in which allpeople understood the importanceof dignity. He then highlighted themilestone achievements the Consti-tution had made. He emphasisedthat socio-economic disparities andinjustices still pose a challenge tothe country as a whole. He said hewas con-cerned that the majority ofSouth Africans live in poverty andare denied their right to dignity.“South Africa has 40 percent ofpeople living below the povertymargin. A person denied food andclothing is denied his/her dignity,”he said. The Constitution requiredcommunities to go the extra milein recognising differences in termsof diverse culture. “The communityhas a duty to promote unity indiversity,” said Justice Langa.

- Bhekani DlaminiChief Justice Pius Langa.

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Andre Gorz- RIPAndre Gorz- RIPAndre Gorz- RIPAndre Gorz- RIPAndre Gorz- RIP

ANDRE Gorz, philosopher of freedom, sociologist of work,ecologist and democratic socialist, trade union adviser, journalistand for a time editor of Nouvelle Observateur and Les TempesModernes, took his life at 84 on 24 September together with hiswife Dorine, 83, who was suffering from a degenerative disease.On 25 September he was about to appear on German Televisionto discuss his latest book, Lettre à D. Histoire d’un amour,published in 2006 – a testament of love to her and their56 years together.

Gorz was a key mentor of France’s New Left. He took the ideaof freedom and equality to areas that his very own mentor Jean-Paul Sartre feared to tread. His vivid writing and analysesbecame a major influence to many in the anti-apartheid andlabour movement in South Africa; from debates of the limitsand possibilities of a democratic workplace to an unconditionalbasic income grant; from a critique of Marxism’s productivismto an ecological communalism; from notions of freedom fromdrudgery and work to the shortening of the working week, fromjob-sharing to the meaning of active and emancipated com-munities.

Gorz was also the celebrated journalist Michel Bosquet, whodescribed in breathtaking detail the miseries of everyday lifeamong working people, immigrants and the poor in the late1960s and early 1970s. But if Bosquet was a pseudonym forGorz, Gorz was not Gorz at all. That was also a pseudonym fora Vienna born son of a Catholic and a Jew who fled Austriawhen the Nazis took control. But in intellectual and literarycircles (because he also wrote fiction) Gorz was to remain Gorz.

Gorz’s Farewell to the Working-Class (1980) and Paths toParadise (1985) were not appreciated at all here: the self-confidence and narcissism of the local scene with a rising andmilitant trade union movement, the heady days of the UDF, thedebates between workerists and populists, all emphasising thecentrality of the working-class or the black working-class createda rather hostile environment for his ideas. The point of hisFarewell was that the working-class was not central to a politicsof emancipation, that the emphasis on the world of productionamong Marxists was as problematic as the emphasis of businessgurus on work-discipline; that freedom presupposedemancipation from work. The “new” way was drafted into hisPaths manuscript- a lyrical vision of a society without constraint,domination and control.

By the late 1980s major parts of his work were accepted by thetrade union movements of France and Germany: that the 35-hour week and later the 30-hour week were a precondition fornot only dealing with unemployment but also a preconditionfor a better quality of life for their members.

1989 saw the publication of the Critique of Economic Reason,a text that has become central to any academic curriculum thatdeals with the “workplace” and its theorisation. It was dense,demanding and uncompromising: it was the least popular bookamong graduate students of industrial sociology and psychology.A decade later came his Reclaiming Work: Beyond the Wage-Based Society, which dealt with exactly what the title implied,(as one of my students remarked about its core point: “theworkplace does not need you…so get a life and create sensibleand meaningful work outside it!”) powered by a trenchantcritique of neo-liberalism.

I am sure that many thinking people in South Africa will notesuch a passing with sadness: all humanists, democrats, socialists,communists, anarchists, ecologists, feminists, trade unionists,intellectuals and people troubled by the meaning of freedom inthe contemporary world have learnt something from hiscompassionate engagement. The ageing couple ended their lifein and through love at a time when what they believed in is notyet with us in this callous world.

- Ari Sitas

12

The Disciplines of Micro-biology and Biochemistryin the School of Bio-

chemistry, Genetics, Microbiologyand Plant Pathology held arecruitment day to encourage finalyear students to pursue post-graduate studies in both fields.

Members of the South AfricanPolice Service (SAPS) were alsoinvited to share information on jobopportunities for science graduateswithin the SAPS Forensic Unit.The speakers for the day wereProfessors Mario Ariatti fromBiochemistry and Bala Pillay fromMicrobiology, Ms Patience Songcafrom the SAPS Drug Unit inAmanzimtoti, as well as Mr Brian

RRRRRecruitment Dayecruitment Dayecruitment Dayecruitment Dayecruitment DayMemela from the SAPS CareerCentre in Pinetown.

Professors Ariatti and Pillayadvised students on making correctcareer choices and encouragedthem to consider studying furtheras obtaining a postgraduate degreewill place them in good stead tofind better jobs in industry. It isbecoming clear that having a BScdegree alone is no longer enoughespecially in a growing economywhere new and more challengingtechnologies are constantly intro-duced. The job market demandsskilled employees who can applytheir knowledge and who are alsoinnovative and can take initiatives.Government is channeling lots of

Back: Professor Bala Pillay (Microbiology), Professor Mario Ariatti (Biochemistry), Mr Brian Memela (SAPSCareer Centre, Pinetown), Ms Patience Songca (SAPS: Drugs Unit, Amanzimtoti).Front: Miss Kaminee Jainarain (student), Miss Zandile Msomi (student), Miss Nomthunzi Ngema and Ms KavithaNaicker.

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money into Biotechnology atpresent.

The SAPS representatives, MsSongca and Mr Memela, discussedvarious career opportunities withinForensics. These include biologicalforensic analysts, drug analysts andballistic analysts, most of whichrequire a Chemistry background aswell as Microbiology, Bio-chemistry and Molecular Biology.The SAPS Forensic Unit providesa six months training programmefor all new employees. An 12-month internship programme isalso available in certain units.

- Bhekani Dlamini

IN an effort to stamp out fraud andcorruption, the University hassecured the services of WhistleBlowers, an information gatheringcompany to whom members of theUniversity community can reportmisdemeanors without fear ofvictimisation.

Whistle Blowers introducedWhistle Blowers introducedWhistle Blowers introducedWhistle Blowers introducedWhistle Blowers introduced

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Mr Brian Zungu, Professor Isobel Konyn, and Mr John Keyter.

Acting Divisional Director ofCorporate Governance, ProfessorIsobel Konyn hosted CampusForums on all five campuses on 22October to introduce WhistleBlowers to the University com-munity. Whistle Blowers’ ChiefExecutive Officer, Mr John Keyter,

and Manager, Mr Brian Zungu,made presentations.

At the Forums, staff raised anumber of of concerns, including:

How does Whistle Blowersdetermine the authenticity ofreports?

Is protection guaranteed?

What does the whistle blower(staff member) do if nothing isdone about the matter reported?

Will Whistle Blowers revealthe identity of the informant tothe University authorities?

Do staff have to discuss thematter with their Managerbefore they report it to WhistleBlowers?

Mr Keyter said that it has oftenbeen remarked that a organisation’sbiggest enemy is its own em-ployees. He added that the

government is investing billions ofrands in Higher Education, and itis incumbent on all staff to curbmisconduct or malpractice. Ac-cording to a survey conducted byauditing firm KPMG, 88 percent offraud in companies is committed byemployees. He said that issues thatshould be reported include theft,corruption, fraud, favouritism,nepotism and other forms of mis-conduct. He assured staff that “weare legally bound to keep infor-mation we receive confidential andthe identity of the whistle bloweris concealed.”

Mr Zungu appealed to the Univer-sity community to take a stand ifthey know of any foul play. WhistleBlowers has trained personnel todetermine the authenticity of callsreceived. The company also hasspecialist investigators. Allreferences to the whistle blower areeliminated to protect him/her. He

encouraged staff to call back andseek feedback on their reports, beit by email or fax.

Government has demonstrated itssupport of the concept of whistleblowing and acknowledged theneed to offer legal protection towhistle blowers through the Pro-tected Disclosures Act, Act 26 of2000. The Act makes provision foremployees to report unlawful orirregular conduct by employers andfellow employees, while providingfor the protection of employeeswho blow the whistle.

Contact Whistle Blowers on:Website: www.whistleblowing.co.zaEmail: info@whistleblowing.co.zaTel: 0800 203 285Fax: 031 308 0550Postal address: PO Box 51006Musgrave 4062

- Bhekani Dlamini

LawLawLawLawLawLibraryLibraryLibraryLibraryLibraryeeeeextensionxtensionxtensionxtensionxtensionTHE new extension to the GMJ Sweeney Law Library hasbeen officially opened on the Howard College campus. TheLaw Faculty has applied to the University’s NamingCommittee to have the extension named after the lateProfessor Ronald Louw because of his commitment to thedevelopment of research in the Faculty and to the use oftechnology. Professor Louw was instrumental in initiatingthe first extensions to the Law Library.

This extension was necessary due to the extra demandscreated by the merger in 2004 of the staff and studentpopulation of the Law Faculties from the previous Universityof Natal and University of Durban-Westville.

This extra workload motivated the Library and ComputerCommittee in the Faculty under Mr Adrian Bellengere, alongwith Dr Reggie Raju, the Head Law Librarian, and the (then)Deputy Dean at Howard College, Professor John Mubangizi,to put together a proposal for the extension of the IT-basedresearch facilities in the library.

The library has reduced the space used for shelving andredistributed the vacant area to create a new researchcommons. The research commons will give researchers theopportunity to use the latest equipment to access everincreasing subscriptions to electronic material.

- Thembeka Nyaba

13

T hird year Speech-LanguagePathology students madepresentations to parents and

children from the local communityto commemorate InternationalStuttering Awareness Day (ISAD)on 22 October.

The presentations provided de-tailed information about the nature,classification and characteristics ofstuttering. They also included waysfor parents, teachers, spouses andemployers to manage stuttering. Aninformation booklet was handedout. The Discipline of Speech-Language Pathology plans tocontribute annually to ISAD in

Speech studentsSpeech studentsSpeech studentsSpeech studentsSpeech studentsreach outreach outreach outreach outreach out

future years, in a continuous effortto eradicate misconceptions aboutstuttering and to promote aware-ness and acceptance of people withstuttering.

The Discipline of Speech-Language Pathology providesspeech therapy services for fluency(stuttering), articulation, learningdisability and language three daysa week, as part of student clinicaltraining. Therapy is offered toclients from throughout KwaZulu-Natal at a minimal charge, at theDiscipline’s clinic. The FluencyDisorders Clinic has been inoperation since April this year. This

clinic is run annually, and isconducted by third year Speech-Language Pathology students. Theclinic has received a good responsefrom clients.

Stuttering affects about 60 millionpeople worldwide, and about500 000 people in South Africa.While the severity of stutteringvaries between individuals, it canhave a very negative impact onpeople’s lives.

For more information about theFluency Clinic, contact 031 260 7438.

- Ashona Balgobind

Speech-Language Pathology students with parents and children.

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A significant breakthrough inresearch into tuberculosis (TB) hasbeen made by a governmentsponsored innovation centre in co-operation with leading UKZNscientists led by Professor WillemSturm, Dean of the Nelson RMandela School of Medicine.

The LIFElab funded NationalGenomics Platform (NGP) col-laborated with scientists fromUKZN’s Nelson R Mandela Schoolof Medicine on a project tosequence the entire genome of one

TB breakthroughTB breakthroughTB breakthroughTB breakthroughTB breakthrough

Professor Willem Sturm.

FINAL year LLB student MsEmma Broster was the winner ofthe 36th Ellie Newman Moot CourtCompetition held on 11 October atthe Howard College campus.

The Ellie Newman Memorial MootCourt Final is the flagship MootCourt competition of the Faculty ofLaw. It was introduced in 1989 inhonour of the late Professor EllieNewman who initiated the com-petition in the early 1970s.

The Final is the culmination of aprocess that involves all final-yearLLB students at the Faculty of Law,Howard College campus, for whomparticipation is compulsory.

Professor John Mubangizi, DeputyVice-Chancellor and Head of theCollege of Law and ManagementStudies, said in his address that thelaw profession requires studentswho are not only armed with

Moot CourtMoot CourtMoot CourtMoot CourtMoot Courtacademic theory and substance, butalso adequately prepared and wellversed with the procedural aspectsof the profession. The Moot Courtprogrammes aim to familiarisestudents with various aspects oflitigation and courtroom pro-cedure.

One of the judges, Judge KatePillay, said the issues raised duringthe Moot Court were very difficult.“We found the participants put in alarge amount of work and were ableto stay calm and deal with thepressure. We were expecting thestudents not to present their caseslike a written and prepared speech;they had to be ready for attacks andissues raised, and they had toanticipate the argument and en-gage.” Judge Pillay said Ms EmmaBroster’s efforts were commend-able.

- Thembeka Nyaba

Ms Emma Broster receives her Moot Court Award from Judge Kate Pillay.

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Career Career Career Career Career ‘Super-Super-Super-Super-Super-HighwayHighwayHighwayHighwayHighway’UKZN’s Alumni Affairs Office hasfacilitated an exciting and inno-vative career ‘Super-Highway’which links alumni to the topcompanies in South Africa – fromconsulting and auditing firms,through to the banks, and the bluechip corporates.

There are over 100 current highprofile jobs and career oppor-tunities available at the moment.All graduates have to do is goonline to www.ukznalumni.drm-za.com, browse the positions andregister their CV online in detail.

The online CV has to be completedcomprehensively, as alumni onlyhave to do it once, and from thenon they can apply for as many jobsas they like at the touch of a button.The ‘Job Alerts’ will advise themevery time a new job is loaded thatsuits their profile.

This facility will proactivelymarket alumni to the top companieswhilst allowing alumni to focus ontheir current positions. All CVs areconfidential and will only be shownto companies with their consent andat no cost.

The focus is on middle, senior andexecutive level managementpositions. Feedback from alumnihas been tremendous.

Employers looking to employ staffcan go onto the portal for detailson how to utilise the facility toattract real UKZN talent.

For more details contact FinnChristensen, Alumni AffairsManager on 031-260 2823 or byemail: christensenf@ukzn.ac.za

- Finn Christensen

strain of Extensively Drug ResistantMycobacterium Tuberculosis(XDR-TB) from a patient inKwaZulu-Natal. This strain ofXDR-TB was successfully decodedand sequenced 20 times.

The purpose of the project was toprovide a reference sequence forfurther projects involving sequen-cing of more isolates of XDR andMulti Drug Resistant-TB (MDR)from KZN. This sequence infor-mation will be used to developrapid molecular diagnostic tools forXDR and MDR-TB. The sequenceinformation will result in morerapid and accurate diagnostic testsfor XDR and MDR-TB and willassist in the development of thera-peutic agents that target drug resis-tant TB. Furthermore, it allows fora better understanding of how TBbacteria causes disease in people.This in turn will aid in designingtools to prevent this disease.

Head of the research team, Pro-fessor Sturm said, “Through the

successful sequencing of the XDRorganism’s full genome, we are ableto analyse the genes based on theirstructure in order to develop a rapidtest to diagnose TB. The sequencingprocess was extremely successful ina short space of time but the workcontinues with a focus on drug andvaccine development that willenable clinicians to treat the diseaseeffectively and without embarkingon a trial and error experimentalphase. This research breakthroughhas the potential to eventuallyfinding a cure.”

“We have made a significant invest-ment in biotechnology innovationin South Africa, and it is veryrewarding to see such positiveresults. TB is an enormous chal-lenge for South Africa, andalthough the breakthrough is not acure, it is a significant step in thatdirection,” said Dr Phil Mjwara,Director General of the Departmentof Science and Technology.

- MaryAnn Francis

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14

T he teaching of history is central to the promotion of human values, said former

Minister of Education, ProfessorKader Asmal, in his address to de-legates at the annual conference ofthe South African Society forHistory Teaching (SASHT). TheConference took place on theEdgewood campus on 21 Sep-tember.

With members across southernAfrica, the SASHT is the onlyprofessional body for History

History conferenceHistory conferenceHistory conferenceHistory conferenceHistory conferenceEducators in South Africa. The 300conference delegates were hostedby the History Education disciplinelocated in the School of SocialScience Education.

A former history teacher, ProfessorAsmal is concerned that sufficientresources are not dedicated to theteaching of History. He describedHistory textbooks during theapartheid era as “appalling”, add-ing that the new curriculumremoved all racist and sexistlanguage from textbooks. He

Dr Johan Wassermann, Course Co-ordinator, History Education and SASHT conference chair); Professor MichaelSamuel, Deputy Dean, Initial Teacher Education); Professor Kader Asmal; Mr. Livhuwani Ndou, Course Co-ordinator, Geography Education; Professor Renuka Vithal, Dean, Faculty of Education; and Professor RelebohileMoletsane, Deputy Dean, Research.

believes that Outcomes-BasedEducation is an effective tool forteaching History.

Noting the recent emphasis onScience and Technology, ProfessorAsmal said that a good Historygraduate can get any job that re-quires intellectual thinking. Heconcluded by congratulatingUKZN on its noteworthy researchoutput.

- Bhekani Dlamini

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WORK which used to take sixweeks is now done in six daysthanks to the wonders of the Inter-net. This is according to inter-national IT expert Mr Jaithirth(Jerry) Rao who delivered a paperentitled “Globalisation: Con-necting with the Global Economy”at the Westville campus.

Mr Rao, who was hosted by theGraduate School of Business inpartnership with the ConsulateGeneral of India, is Chair of

IT RIT RIT RIT RIT Revolutionevolutionevolutionevolutionevolution

From left: Mr Harsh Vardhan Shringla, Consul General of India; guestspeaker, Mr Jaithirth (Jerry) Rao; Mr Amichand Rajbansi, KZN Ministerfor Sport and Recreation; Professor Anesh Singh, Head of the GraduateSchool of Business and Mr Ashok Sewnarain, CEO of International BankVaults.

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PAST students and staff ofUKUSA, the longest standingCommunity Arts Programme inSouth Africa, joined forces recentlyat the Elizabeth Sneddon Theatreon the Howard College campus totake part in two concerts. The firstconcert featured students fromUKUSA. The second concertfeatured the well known and lovedmusician Melvin Peters who chairsthe UKUSA Board with Mr JeffRobinson, member of UKUSABoard and lecturer at UKZN, andfriends, who treated listeners toseveral hours of great music.

UKUSA was born in 1987, duringone of the worst periods of internal

UKUSAUKUSAUKUSAUKUSAUKUSA’s 20s 20s 20s 20s 20ththththth

AnniversaryAnniversaryAnniversaryAnniversaryAnniversaryCelebrationCelebrationCelebrationCelebrationCelebration

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UKUSA students.

MphasiS, an EDS company withtwin headquarters in New York andBangalore. Mr Rao, also the Vice-President and General Manager ofEDS, a global IT services giant, isa regular writer and speaker ontechnology strategy, financialservices and the Internet. He spokeabout the power of doing business onthe internet and how it had changedservice delivery for the better.

Doing business on the Internet wasconvenient and reduced costs and

saved time. According to Mr Rao,work that used to take six weeks isnow done in six days, recorded,audited and delivered. Technologyalso allows for work to be decom-posed into smaller parts and doneremotely. The Internet made iteasier to run a digitised factory indifferent parts of the world withless staff. “People can access thisfactory from all over the world.This shift has yielded enormousproductivity and profitabilitygains.” He told delegates he ran abusiness which employed 23 000people and had a turnover of morethan US$1billion a year.

Mr Rao pointed out that throughtechnology the world was headingfor another industrial revolution.He emphasised that South Africawas an integral part of the digitalindustry and had a major part toplay in the global economy. Hedispelled the perception thattechnology brought job losses,rather the IT industry created jobs.KwaZulu-Natal Minister of Sportand Recreation, Mr AmichandRajbansi and a number of localbusiness people attended the lecture.

- Bhekani Dlamini

strife and bloodshed in apartheidhistory. The programme started asa small local arts outreach project,in a dilapidated shed of the oldDurban Station Building, by offer-ing a space to township youth toexplore their artistic talents. Morethan 8 000 students have attendedUKUSA, coming from all overgreater Durban and as far afield asUlundi in the north, Port Shepstonein the south, and Pietermaritzburg.Professor Elizabeth Oehrle is foun-der and co-ordinator of this com-munity project. Many UKUSA stu-dents have gone on to achieve theirdreams in careers of their choice.

- Betsy Oehrle

THE Engineering Invitation Day was an ideal opportunity for Grade12 learners to discover exactly what is in store for them if they studyEngineering at UKZN next year.

About 250 learners who have received firm and conditional offers for2008, accompanied by their parents, attended the event on the HowardCollege campus. The programme kicked off in the Student Union Hallwith an address by the Dean of Engineering, Professor Nelson Ijumba.He emphasised the Faculty’s commitment to excellence, highlightingthe Engineering Council of South Africa’s (ECSA) accreditation ofall UKZN’s Engineering degrees. Admissions Officer, Ms Cathi Bond,followed with an explanation of the logistics pertaining to theadmissions and registration processes. Third-year ComputerEngineering Student, Mr Peter Dawoud, concluded the formalprogramme with a candid and somewhat comical rendition of the lifeof an engineering student.

Grouped according to their engineering discipline of choice, thelearners then spent time in one of the five Schools, touring the facilitiesand interacting with the academic staff and students. The morningended with a light lunch during which the learners engaged in one-on-one sessions with the Dean and Faculty staff.

Feedback from learners and parents indicate that the event was aresounding success. Numerous e-mails and messages were receivedcongratulating the Faculty on a well run and informative day. Oneparent said she now feels a lot more confident that UKZN can providethe education her son requires.

- Vicky Crookes

EngineeringEngineeringEngineeringEngineeringEngineeringInvitation DayInvitation DayInvitation DayInvitation DayInvitation Day

15

T he Irish Ambassador toSouth Africa, His Excel-lency Mr Colin Wrafter,

visited the Health Economics andHIV/AIDS Research Division(HEARD) on 28 September. Hewas accompanied by his wife, MrsAisling De Bruca.

The Irish Government agency, IrishAID, is funding a HEARD researchproject on HIV prevalence amongstadolescents in South Africa,

Irish Ambassador visitsIrish Ambassador visitsIrish Ambassador visitsIrish Ambassador visitsIrish Ambassador visitsHEARDHEARDHEARDHEARDHEARD

focusing on KwaZulu-Natal andLimpopo and Mpumulanga pro-vinces. The agency is also sup-porting a number of youth-orientedpractical intervention programmes.

Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Headof the College of Law and Manage-ment Studies Professor JohnMubangizi welcomed the Am-bassador and expressed his grati-tude for the generous supportHEARD receives from the Irish

government. Professor AlanWhiteside, Director of HEARD,gave a slide presentation on theresearch activities and findingsundertaken by this Division. HisExcellency, Mr Wrafter, said hewas very impressed with HEARD’sactivities. He believes that its workwill help South Africa plan for thefuture.

- Bhekani Dlamini

(l-r) Professor John Mubangizi; His Excellency, Mr Colin Wrafter; Mrs Aisling De Bruca; and Professor AlanWhiteside.

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A deep concern for under-privileged children was the catalystwhich led to Mrs ShereenMarimuthu bringing a group ofyoungsters from the Siyanda in-formal settlement near KwaMashu,north of Durban, to the Universityfor the first time recently. MrsMarimuthu, Secretary in the Schoolof Computer Science on the West-ville Campus, encouraged thechildren to attend the Youth Clubwhere she works with them everyweek. She also provided them withan opportunity to use a computerin the Computer Science labo-ratory. Mrs Marimuthu works witha local church leader, Pastor SagrenMunsamy and together they drivethe youth project in the area.

The children were addressed bymembers of the SRC who stressed

the need to obtain good results inschool in order to gain entrance tothe University. AIDS was also highon the debate agenda. Mr ShekaBangura, Principal Tutor in theSchool of Computer Science,spoke on career choices, high-lighting the need for students toperform well in school, lookingbeyond their current situation.

Mrs Marimuthu said she workedwith underprivileged childrenbecause she realised they neededsomeone to give them hope. Sheexpressed her sincere thanks to theSchool of Computer Science andinvites members of staff who wantto be part of this youth motivatingproject to contact her on extension7136 or marimuthus@ukzn.ac.za

- Bhekani Dlamini

A sense ofA sense ofA sense ofA sense ofA sense ofcommunitycommunitycommunitycommunitycommunity

Children from the Siyanda informal settlement at the Computer ScienceLab.

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YYYYYoung Health Scientists Roung Health Scientists Roung Health Scientists Roung Health Scientists Roung Health Scientists Research Symposiumesearch Symposiumesearch Symposiumesearch Symposiumesearch SymposiumINTERNATIONAL pharma-ceutical company Pfizer andUKZN’s Faculty of HealthSciences hosted a National YoungHealth Scientists’ ResearchSymposium on the Howard Collegecampus on 19 October.

Participants were graduates with anhonours level equivalent degree oran honours degree in the HealthSciences and medical disciplines.The Universities of Cape Town,Stellenbosch, Witwatersrand,Limpopo (Medunsa Campus), FreeState and UKZN participated. Allparticipants were judged accordingto clinically-based research,laboratory-based research andcommunity-based research.

Mr Richard Paulson, CEO andCountry Manager of Pfizer-SouthAfrica said, “We are delighted andproud to be a key partner with theUniversity of KwaZulu-Natal’sHealth Sciences Faculty in bringingtogether the gathering of youngingenuity and resourcefulness. Mayyour research outcomes contributeprogressively to the improvementof the quality of life for all SouthAfricans.”

Winner in the clinically-basedresearch category was Mr TCMotsoeng from the University ofthe Free State whose research topicwas, “ADAMTS13 Levels andActivity in Type 2 Von WillebrandDisease”. Von Willebrand diseaseis a commonly inherited bleedingdisorder.

Adjudicators at the Symposiumconsisted of Professor Marie-LouisNewell, Director of The AfricaCentre for Health and PopulationStudies, Professor HendrikKoornof, a consultant micro-biologist in the TB ReferenceLaboratory of the National HealthLaboratory Service, and Professor

Mino Caira, Director of the Centrefor Supra-molecular ChemistryResearch at the University of CapeTown.

Winner in the Laboratory-basedresearch category was Ms J Lynchfrom the University of Stellenboschwhose topic of research was,

“Evaluation of a real-time PCR forthe identification of the IS6110element in the Mycobacteriumtuberculosis complex.”

In the community-based category,Ms O Kirk from the University ofCape Town took first prize for herresearch entitled, “IntermediatePhase Learners Experiences ofCommunication in LinguisticallyComplex Classrooms.”

Pfizer will sponsor the event againnext year and has once againchosen UKZN as the host univer-sity. Professor Sabiha Essack, Deanof the Faculty of Health Sciencesat UKZN had a special message forthe presenters, “This symposium isspecifically and deliberately dedi-cated to young health scientists,undergraduate students on thethreshold of graduation as health-care professionals, in an attempt torecruit you into research careers.We take pride in the fact thatundergraduate students’ research ismaking an invaluable contributionto optimising healthcare in SouthAfrica.”

- MaryAnn Francis

Professor L Uys, Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Head of the College of Health Sciences; Mr TC Motsoeng, Universityof the Free State; Professor S Essack, Dean of UKZN’s Faculty of Health Sciences; Ms J Lynch, University ofStellenbosch; Ms O Kirk, University of Cape Town; and Mr R Paulson, CEO and Manager of Pfizer-South Africa.

16

Recycle your ukzndabaPlease don’t litter ... when you’ve finished with your ukzndaba, why notpass it on to someone else, or place it in a bin for recycling with other paper-waste.

Produced by Public Affairs and Corporate Communications www.ukzn.ac.za Tel: 031 260 1245/2027/2957/7115 Fax: 031 260 2813

Sport Corner

Eleven UKZN sport am-bassadors were recog-nised at an awards function

at the Westville campus SportsCentre on 25 October. They werehonoured for representing theUniversity at the World StudentsGames in Bangkok earlier this year.

Miss Chandelle Jeanine Lombard,Judo champion, and Mr PieterKoekemoer, Gold Medalist andathlete, were named the best UKZNsportswoman and sportsman. TheUniversity scooped the only goldmedal for the South African teamat the World Students Games. Twostudents were nominated from eachcampus to enter the sportswomanand sportsman of the year.

Executive of the South AfricaStudents Sport Union (SASSU)

Sport awardsSport awardsSport awardsSport awardsSport awards

Back: Mr Pieter Koekemoer, UKZN Sportsman and Gold Medalist; Mr Jason Sewanyana and Mr Mario Rankin(then World Student Games representatives).Front row: Ms Chandelle Lombard, UKZN Sportswoman, Ms Gugu Sikobi, Ms Arisha Madaree and Ms VidharthaDeonarain.

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BanquetBanquetBanquetBanquetBanquet

and former President of the SportUnion, Mr Sanele Madlala accom-panied the South African team tothe World Students Games toBangkok. He said the experiencegained would be used for thebenefit of students. He thanked theUniversity for its assistance andsupport during the year.

Executive Dean of Student Ser-vices, Mr Trevor Wills congratu-lated students for having repre-sented UKZN in sport. He addedthat the event was an opportunityto reflect on the year’s experienceand recognise students who haveachieved university-wide. “It’s timeto recognise talent. We are a wayabove average University when itcomes to sport, despite ourfacilities being below average,”said Mr Wills. He congratulated

sport participants for their per-formance, and clubs and SportAdministration for their enormousamount of work.

Head of Sport Administration MrAndile Nqini, who accompaniedstudents to Bangkok as a Manager,thanked students for their excellentperformance. He also expressed hisappreciation for the supportpromised by the KwaZulu-NatalSport Academy and the ExecutiveDean’s Office. UKZN PublicAffairs and Corporate Communi-cations sponsored the entire event.“With these promises and ourgenerous sponsor we hope to makethis event bigger next year,” con-cluded Mr Nqini.

- Bhekani Dlamini

Front: Ms Gugu Sikobi, Dr Bheki W Ngcobo (Deputy Dean: Students) and Mr Andile Nqini (Head: Sport Administration).Back: Mr Mwabi Kumwenda, Mr Mosa Matloga, Mr Kopano Monageng, Ms Bianca Fearick, Mr FrederickLouw, Mr Adelard Karuhariwe and Ms Nosipho Dumakude .

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A legendaryA legendaryA legendaryA legendaryA legendaryteacherteacherteacherteacherteacher

THE UKZN School of Music paidtribute to one of the doyennes ofSouth African piano teachers onher 90th birthday!

Ms Moira Kearney was the guestof honour at a lunch-hour concertpresented by the School of Musicat Howard College Theatre on8 October. The celebratory concertfeatured MMus graduate Mr FilipKormúth (piano), current BMusstudent Ms Melissa Hoover (flute)and guest performer Ms JacquelineWederburn-Maxwell (violin) ac-companied by current pianolecturer Dr Liezl-Maret Jacobs.

Ms Kearney (nee Birks) was thefirst person to fill the post of Pianolecturer at the newly openedDepartment of Music at the former

Dr Liezl-Maret Jacobs and Ms Moira Kearney.

University of Natal in 1974 underthe headship of Professor MichaelBrimer.

A life-long member of the SouthAfrican Society of Music Teachers,a UNISA examiner, UNISA MusicCompetition panel judge andprivate music teacher, she was aprodigious performer who gavemany SABC Studio Recitals andlive symphony concert broadcastsas well as solo piano recitals acrossthe country.

Her teaching career spanned 60years – she joined the Universityin her twenties and was stillteaching privately well into hereighties!

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