Dear UJ community,
Like many countries worldwide, South Africa grapples with the challenge of unemployment, especially among the youth. Data from Statistics South Africa indicate a 45,5% unemployment rate among young individuals (aged 15-34 years), in contrast to the national average of 32,9% in the first quarter of 2024. Everyone agrees that solving unemployment in our beloved country should be our number one priority if we are to address the enduring challenges of inequality and the concomitant socio-economic problems. However, what is not entirely clear is what is to be done to solve this problem.
JBS hosts the Skills and Jobs Investment Summit
This week, our Johannesburg Business School (JBS) hosted a successful Skills and Jobs Investment Summit in collaboration with the Deputy Minister of Higher Education and Training, Dr Mimmy Gondwe. The two-day summit, which Richfield sponsored, brought together policymakers, heads of Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges, and organised business and academia to deliberate and develop tangible commitments on how to improve skills levels in the country. It was encouraging to hear the Deputy Minister praising JBS for bringing research skills and rigour to the much-needed conversation on tackling the country’s high youth and graduate unemployment rate. As Dr Randall Carolissen, the Dean of JBS, put it, young people must be absorbed into the economy as employees or business owners to ensure full economic citizenship. I congratulate Dr Carolissen and his team at JBS for hosting such a successful event. To read more about this, click here.
UJ students showcasing their innovation prowess
Talking of young people and job creation, an unexpected encounter with one of our students this week reminded me of how our University produces innovative graduates with attributes to position themselves as future entrepreneurs. While on a walkabout on campus, I bumped into a student working on what looked like an out-of-the-ordinary bicycle. It turned out that students Glorie Mwamba and Fhumulani Mphephu, his classmate in the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering Science, were building a solar-powered bike for their final-year project! It is indeed inspiring to see the innovative projects our students take on.
At UJ, we are proud to be one of South Africa’s top choices for studying science, technology, and engineering, where future engineers will be equipped to find sustainable solutions for our world. Projects like that remind us how UJ has firmly established itself in the research and innovation space, which has, in turn contributed to us attaining top positions in the various global University rankings.
Strengthening global partnerships and engagements
Earlier this week, our University hosted a delegation from China led by the Honorable Mr Zhang Young, Vice Mayor of the City of Xi’an Municipal People’s Government. Prof Ylva Rodny-Gumede, Head of the Division for Global Engagement, led the UJ team. Important discussions around collaborations on smart cities, the impact of AI on higher education and our students, and important basic and early childhood education and integration into higher education in the context of China and South Africa took place. Thank you to all the colleagues and Prof Baosheng Li, Co-Director of UJ’s Confucius Institute, who generously shared their time to engage with our valued guests from Xi’an.
On Tuesday, our University also hosted a high-level delegation from Chile. The delegation was led by Her Excellency Ms Gloria de la Fuente, Deputy Foreign Minister of Chile, accompanied by Mr Julio Fiol, Ambassador of Chile to South Africa and Mr Carlos Moran, Ambassador of Chile to Africa and the Middle East. Minister de la Fuente gave a keynote address on South Africa – Chilean – Global South collaboration and common challenges and purpose to the 30 Years of Democracy colloquium hosted by the Faculty of Humanities. Other discussion topics were higher education and digital transformations, transitional democracies, feminist foreign policy, basic education and neurodiversity. Thank you to all our colleagues for making this such a valuable engagement.
UJ Sport Awards
On Friday last week, UJ Sport, within the University Relations Division, honoured its top student-athletes at the annual UJ Sport Awards, highlighting new talent. Track star Lythe Pillay and gymnast Caitlin Rooskrantz were named the 2024 UJ Sportsman and Sportswoman of the Year. Pillay, a second-year BCom Accounting student, won gold in the 400m at the national championships and silver with South Africa’s 4x400m relay team in the Bahamas. Rooskrantz excelled in international gymnastics, securing her place in the Paris 2024 Olympics. First-year student Diodivine Mkhize received the Student-Athlete of the Year award for excellence in both academics and sport. To read more about this, click here.
Faculty of Art, Design and Architecture’s (FADA) Dean’s Concert
After a four-year break, UJ Arts & Culture, a division of FADA, hosted “A Grand Night for Singing”, a glamorous and inspirational musical celebration led by FADA’s Executive Dean, Professor Federico Freschi. This annual event occurred on Saturday evening, 2 November 2024, at the UJ Arts Centre. A Grand Night for Singing was a gala fundraiser for the Dean’s Bursary Fund, established by Professor Freschi, to provide financial assistance to academically deserving students in FADA who face financial hardship. The event showcased performances by the UJ Choir, sopranos Khayakazi Madlalala and Sisikelelwe Mngenela, tenor Siyabonga Motloung, pianists Eugene Joubert and Christopher Duigan, with Prof Freschi also taking the stage. Heartfelt thanks to all who supported this memorable night—I’m already looking forward to next year’s concert!
Ke a leboha, ngiyabonga, thank you, baie dankie!
Professor Letlhokwa Mpedi: Vice-Chancellor and Principal
Times mentioned in this newsletter refer to the South African time zone.
