​The dean of the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences at Stellenbosch University, Prof Stan du Plessis, the director of USB, Prof Piet Naudé, and the chairman of the USB Advisory Board, Mr Simon Susman, announced the names of several well-known South African executives that will serve on the Business School's Advisory Board for a term of three years.

The new members are:

• Dr Judy Dlamini, executive chair of the Mbekani Group
  
• Dr Sias Mostert, managing director of Space Commercial Services
  
• Mr Thys du Toit, managing director of Rootstock Investment Management
  
• Ms Phuti Mahanyele, CEO of the Shanduka Group
  
• Ms Terry Volkwyn, CEO of Primedia Broadcasting
  
• Ms Jo-Ann Strauss-Held, director of companies and entrepreneur.
  

At the announcement, Prof Du Plessis said the new members were carefully selected to complement the existing Board members. "We made sure that the new members come from all industries, bring a wealth of experience and represent the diversity of Stellenbosch University and our society. Their input will help to ensure that the Business School's academic programmes will prepare our students for real-world challenges in any industry, anywhere in the world."

Prof Naudé said that he has no doubt that the new members of the Board will make an invaluable contribution to USB. "We are looking forward to their expert advice on how to take USB to a new level where it would be recognised as the undoubted leader in Africa and among the top schools in the world. We can now build on the solid foundation that has once again been confirmed earlier this month with the announcement of USB's international EQUIS re-accreditation on the highest possible level (5-year term)."

Well-known among Maties is Jo-Ann Strauss-Held, a former Miss South Africa and Matie alumnus who graduated from Stellenbosch University with a BCom (Law).

The new members will join the 18-member Advisory Board under the chairmanship of Mr Simon Susman, non-executive chairman of Woolworths and non-executive chairman of Virgin Active International. 

There is no 'one' solution to the country's cancer problem and a combined effort between the public and private sectors, academia, advocacy groups and patients is required to beat this complex disease.

Decades of research and medical ingenuity have improved and extended the lives of many cancer patients, but despite these advances, the number of cancer cases continues to grow and experts estimate that the caseload could double by 2030.

"Not Beyond Us" is the theme of this year's World Cancer Day, marked annually on 4 February. This message reinvigorates the human fighting spirit and reminds us that through group effort and solidarity, we can restore hope and overcome the rising tide of cancer.

Many cancer awareness messages seem to have had minimal impact, and despite countless campaigns promoting healthy living and regular screening, the number of cancer diagnosis have been climbing steadily over the years.

"Health lifestyle choices, access to early detection, availability of treatments – including radiotherapy and chemotherapy – and robust advocacy are the essential ingredients needed to tackle our population's growing cancer problems," says Prof Vikash Sewram, director of the African Cancer Institute (ACI) at Stellenbosch University's Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMHS).

He believes that a consolidated effort should be guided by a robust plan and driven by commitment. 

"The battle will only be won if we all take responsibility for the problem. Scientists and clinicians cannot be solely responsible for finding a solution. Working partnerships between clinicians, scientists, the public and private sector, advocacy groups, the media and government is required to bring about real change in the fight against cancer," Sewram maintains.

In addition to the personal cost to patients and their families, the disease also negatively impacts on the economy as it often affects the country's workforce. "To ensure a robust economy, investment in ways to minimise the burden of cancer is paramount," says Sewram.

To improve the outcome of cancer patients in South Africa, the country's healthcare bodies need to obtain a better understanding of the barriers to cancer prevention and care, and make affordable treatment available to all. More should also be done to reduce the suffering of those with end-stage disease, and greater patient-family interaction is required to improve the quality of life of patients.

Sewram believes that research-oriented patient care is of paramount importance. "Life-saving research findings will reach patients and other stakeholders quicker in an environment lucrative for innovation that is supported by good infrastructure and coupled with high-impact teams undertaking interdisciplinary research," says Sewram.

"Surveillance is often neglected and yet it forms an integral component of cancer prevention and control activities. Greater investment from stakeholders is necessary to inform the placement of resources and guide intervention activities."

Media enquiries:

27 (0)21 938 9505
mandi@sun.ac.za
Marketing and Communication Office
Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences
Stellenbosch University

Website:                      www.sun.ac.za/health
Facebook:                   www.facebook.com/SUhealthsci
Twitter:                        @SUhealthsci

​​​​​The annual Engineering Open Day will take place on Saturday 28 February 2015 from 09:00 until 16:00 at the Engineering building complex.

This popular event, which was held in April for many years, will coincide with Stellenbosch University's Open Day from 2015.

However, the format of the Engineering Open Day will follow the same successful recipe as in the past, with lots of exciting and educational exhibits and demonstrations that will reflect the interesting world of the engineer. These exhibits and demonstrations will be presented by personnel and students of the five Engineering Departments, namely Civil, Electrical & Electronic, Industrial, Mechanical & Mechatronic, and Process (Chemical).

To see how engineers use science and technology in an innovative manner to make the world a better place for all, do pop in any time between 09:00 and 16:00 at the Engineering complex, corner of Banghoek Road and Joubert Street (diagonally across the Traffic Department), Stellenbosch. The starting point is at the big white marquee tent on the lawn in front of the Engineering building complex. Visitors will receive important information kits and a route map here.

A tour of all the exhibits (on you own or accompanied by a student acting as a tour guide) should take about three hours. However, you can plan your route according to the time you have available.

Admission is free of charge and everyone is welcome. This includes school groups.

The Engineering Open Day offers educational entertainment for the whole family. High school learners and their parents will also get the opportunity to find out more about engineering as a career and a field of study during an information session regarding the Faculty of Engineering's degree programmes (that will be repeated during the course of the day). These half-hour sessions will be held at 09:30, 11:00, 12:30 and 14:00 in the Reitz Hall situated in the General Engineering building close to the marquee tent.

Learners who still have to select subjects, and who are considering engineering as a career, should definitely attend to find out how important Mathematics and Physical Sciences are for admission to engineering studies.

A few companies, which have been specifically selected on the basis of bursaries they have available for prospective engineering students, will also be present.

For more information, send an e-mail to engineer@sun.ac.za.

Click here to see a short video taken at last year's Engineering Open Day.​​

​test site

This year, the Stellenbosch University Woordfees (word festival) received a financial windfall through the WF20, an initiative of the chairman of the Woordfees advisory committee, Rudolf Gouws.

''Frankly, we shamelessly adopted the model used by the Clover Aardklop National Arts Festival, which for the past six years had been using 'AK21' to generate additional revenue for their festival," Gouws said grinning widely. His wife and brother are both directors of Aardklop, and "we believe the country's arts festivals need to work together and learn from each other, rather than compete against each other".

The WF20 is a simple concept according to which art lovers each donate R20 000 to the Woordfees every year. The money is used to sponsor a particular production.

"Twenty people have already bought into the initiative. We started the project this year and hopefully more people will become involved in future," said Gouws, who retired as chief economist of Rand Merchant Bank in 2009 and is associated with Stellenbosch University as professor extraordinary of economics.

Donors receive certain privileges that include being able to book tickets to shows one day ahead of the public; receiving invitations to the Woordfees programme launch; and having access to the hospitality suite at the Woordfees. Also included are special parking at the festival grounds; invitations to wine and music days; opportunities to meet the artists; and tickets to suites at the Spier Amphitheatre.

However, these privileges are not why people are prepared to become donors. "They do it to support the arts," Gouws explained.

This year, the Woordfees is being presented for the sixteenth time; the reason for the '16 ounces' theme. Despite strong attendance figures that increase annually, this festival – like almost every other arts festival across the world – is continually seeking new sources of revenue. Modern patrons such as Gouws and other sponsors accordingly play an important role to lighten the financial burden on these festivals.

"That is not unusual. The arts have always had patrons, both male and female. Among those are the Catholic Church and the de' Medici family of the Middle Ages," Gouws said. "If we want to see theatre and other art, we need to dip into our pockets and produce."

In the past, regional arts councils such as the Cape Performing Arts Board (CAPAB), the Performing Arts Council of the Transvaal (PACT) and the Performing Arts Council of the Orange Free State (PACOFS), through their ballet, opera and theatre companies, provided artists with a fairly stable source of income. Some of these councils also commissioned new productions. However, since the regional councils dissolved in the 1990s, national arts festivals have become a lifeline to many artists.

With the dissolution of the arts councils, government funding dried up almost entirely, and although it has been difficult to access significant amounts from the National Lottery, somehow it was possible to maintain existing or newly formed opera and ballet companies, including symphony orchestras – mostly under severe financial pressure. Given the large number of new theatre and music productions it is evident that artists will not allow their voices to be silenced by financial constraints.

But should government not step in again to support the arts through structures such as the arts councils?

"As the need is equally pressing in many other areas, it would be difficult to convince government of this. Moreover, the capacity for corruption in state structures would seem to be too discouraging to explore this idea further. I believe it would be more advantageous if those who are able to do so, join forces and make things happen," said Gouws.

He believes cooperation between the various arts festivals is important – not only because costs may be shared when presenting co‑productions – but also because expertise could be exchanged in the process.

"To this end, Marguerite Robinson who is programme consultant of Aardklop is one of the Woordfees adjudicators."

In 2011, the SU Woordfees won a kykNET Fiestas award as the most popular arts festival in the country. The Fiestas recently announced that the Woordfees was again one of the best festivals in the country. The winner will be announced in March.

"We are fortunate in that geographically we are conveniently located, which gives us a slight edge over other arts festivals. People from Durbanville, Gordonsbaai, Somerset West, Paarl, Wellington, Cape Town, and even from the Cape West Coast are within easy drive of Stellenbosch to come and see our shows. Our so‑called swallows – foreigners who live here for the South African summer – are also keen festivalgoers. An added advantage is that people who visit the Woordfees have easy access to the ocean and mountains."

Although Gouws's love of the arts embraces all genres, he evidently prefers classical music.

Paging through the Woordfees programme, Gouws said: "Just have a look at the incredible classical music programme. Nina Schumann and Luis Magalhães, Roelof and Zorada Temmingh ... to name but a few. No, it's impossible to single out a performance. Everything here is wonderful. We are fortunate to have someone of Peter Martens's stature in charge of things. As cellist and director of the Stellenbosch International Chamber Music Festival, Martens has a packed programme and is on tour continually. In addition, he does exceptional work for the Woordfees."

According to Gouws, his role as chairman of the Woordfees advisory committee is "to help open doors through my associations in the business world and to assist in coordinating a few things. However, Woordfees director of 2015, Saartjie Botha, and her team manage to do such incredible work that my role really pales next to theirs."

​Vensters 2015, one of the highlights on the student calendar, was once again a roaring success with a total of 18 500 tickets sold. 

Vensters forms part of the MAD² program. MAD² (Making A Decision 2 Make A Difference) is a fun, student-driven, fundraising project in aid of Matie Community Service (MCS), better known as MCS – Matie Community Service.

"For Vensters 2015 we set out with a clear goal to achieve one of the best and safest Vensters ever and I can certainly say that we achieved just that," says James de Villiers, Vensters Coordinator.

According to De Villiers only a few complaints were received at campus security with residences acting swiftly to respond to complaints. Says De Villiers: "Campus security said crowd control improved exceedingly this year with a clear drop in alcohol related crime cases. This is again testament of a campus coming together, as Vensters 2015 saw all partners coming together to achieve its success."

De Villiers added: "We are so grateful for every house that accepted the challenge with us in creating one of the best Vensters ever. Without their cooperation Vensters would've been a failure."

The productions were well received. Crowds were entertained by houses taking the public through the imagination of Stellenbosch students. This year's theme for MAD² and also for Vensters was Challenge Accepted.

Trapkarre

On the 31st of January houses battled it out to be the winners of MADsquare Trapkarre. 

The Stelenbosch Formula 1, as it is known around town, was a massive success in building a community within the Stellenbosch University structures, raising awareness for Matie Community Services and having loads of healthy competitive fun! Teams, composed of senior students from University House Pairs, raced around the Trapkar track, over the Rooiplein and down Victoria towards the finish line. Spectators, competing for the annual Gees Beker, cheered their drivers on. This event is truly a little bit of the old (trollies-race), and a whole lot of the new. The Trapkar was an unconventional trapkar but added to the fun and the spirit of the day.

Daniella Bezuidenhout, Trapkarre coordinator, said: "Seeing that Trapkarre is a new event on the MADsquare calendar we are impressed with the big turn-out of students as well as the huge support the crowd shown." Bezuidenhout says that she sees a lot of potential  to expand Trapkarre to make it a truly community event. 

The winning houses for the day was Eendrag and Lydia. 

Although MAD² Welcoming is over, there are still a few events such as the Fun Run, Big Bleed and JOOL-Concert to look forward to. All winners of MAD² including Vensters and Trapkarre, will be made at the Jool-concert taking place in March.

​​Dr Kobus Serfontein, senior lecturer and head of the MBA Leadership Module at USB, started in his new position on Monday, 5 January 2015.​

"I spent the past 12 years at USB Executive Development (USB-ED) and the past five years as part-time lecturer on USB's MBA programme. Along with this, I am also a visiting lecturer at the Frankfurt and Hamburg Business Schools in Germany and the ESSEC Business School in France," he says.

He was head of Human Resources at Woolworths International and then part of PSG's Executive Committee as head of Human Resources before his time at USB.

"As part of the Leadership Module, my focus is on strategic leadership, systems thinking as a platform for leadership development and management of change.

"There is exceptional pressure on future leaders and managers to immediately succeed and be productive in this turbulent environment and changing world. The Leadership Module is designed to prepare them (the students) to manage the challenges and changes of the future in a systemic way," he continues.

He highlighted three important points that students will learn in the classroom:

1.    The first thing students will learn is that true leadership development is focused on theory and process. At USB, students get exposure to well-researched and relevant theory during the entire period of their studies, which is focused on preparing students for future leadership challenges.

2.    The Leadership Module, along with the theory, also provides a personal leadership discovery process where students have the opportunity to discover their own potential and gradually build it.

3.    The students will also learn that leadership has almost no shelf life and that their past successes are likely to be responsible for possible failures in the future if they are not prepared to adapt to the demands of the new world. For this reason, the Leadership Module on the USB MBA is comprehensive and focuses on all the dimensions of personal, inter-personal and organisational leadership development.

"At USB, we not only facilitate the theory, but also give the students exposure to the process of their own personal discovery and development. Therefore, we are preparing them to confidently tackle leadership challenges in a changing environment," he concludes.

​Prof de Klerk was the Chief Ethics Officer at Sasol for the past three years before he started working at USB this year. He worked at Sasol for a total of 27 years. ​

He was also a part-time lecturer on the Industrial Psychology Programme at the University of Pretoria and he was a visiting professor in Management and Leadership at the University of the Free State.

The modules he will present all fall under the Leadership Module of the MBA. He will focus on Group Dynamics and High Performance Human Management in particular.

On the relevance of his parts of the Module he says the following:

"The other day I said to a few students: 'Culture eats strategy for breakfast'. In other words, the more we work with culture, the better we will understand it and the better one can work with it to enhance the operation of an organisation."

Prof de Klerk also strongly believes that one must first understand the why before one can understand the how.

"If you understand why something happens, you can work with the how. My focus is to understand why certain things happen rather than the recipe of 'What should I do with it?'

"I think we too quickly want to suggest a success recipe of what we should do."

He wants to get students passionate about the issues and constructs with which they work, because "then they would want to work with it also once they are done with their studies".

"To be able to teach full-time at USB is very fulfilling. In the past, I could only do it part-time. What an incredible privilege and opportunity," he says.

Stellenbosch University (SU) is the first institution in South Africa to partner with Seeding Labs, a US-based organisation which distributes donated lab equipment to developing countries for much-needed research and training.

In March 2013 Prof André de Villiers and Ms Peta Steyn from the Department of Chemistry and Polymer Science applied for donated lab equipment worth R2 million after SU's Division for Research Development contributed R200 000 as seed money to the project.

In August that year they learned that their application was one of the 19 projects selected worldwide out of 74 applications from 27 countries. All applications went through a strict review process to ensure that the equipment goes to established scientists with the institutional support and infrastructure to make full use of the instrumentation.

The much-anticipated shipment, which arrived in the Cape Town harbour in December 2014, is now being unpacked and installed in the analytical chemistry, inorganic chemistry and organic chemistry labs of the Department of Chemistry and Polymer Science. There it will be used for research and for training of undergraduate students.

The equipment includes a mass spectrometer, two high performance liquid chromatography instruments (HPLC), one water purifier (Millipore Elix), two rotary evaporators, two high-precision balances and a variety of other lab equipment and instructional software for undergraduate use.

Prof de Villiers says he is quite thrilled. He plans to set the analytical instrumentation up in the separation science lab for use by postgraduate students, other researchers and in undergraduate practicals.

Ms Steyn is as excited about her new toys, especially the Millipore Elix water purifier: "We are trying to assist with the HOPE project's green energy drive on campus by making the department more energy efficient. By replacing our water boiler distillation units with reverse osmosis systems we are able to reduce both our electricity and water usage substantially. The addition of this instrument is assisting us in this endeavour."

She says it is difficult to obtain funding for medium cost instruments. "The NRF's National Equipment Programme makes provision for the multi-million rand type of instruments. It is, however, hard to find funding for instruments like this purifier, ultraviolet ray or infrared spectrophotometers or HPLC systems."

On the photo, Ms Peta Steyn and Prof André de Villiers from the Department of Chemistry and Polymer Science, surrounded by the donated equipment from Seeding Labs. At the back are some of the postgraduate students that will be working with the equipment: from left to right, Waheed Saban (PhD), Jacquin October (MSc), Ene Slazus (MSc), Aron Goitom (PhD), and standing behind them, Sithandile Ngxangxa (MSc), Cassiem Joseph (MSc) and Pieter Venter (Phd). Photo: Wiida Fourie-Basson

Professor Frederik Uys had the opportunity to attend the 10^th International Conference on Public Administration (ICPA)  which was held in Chengdu, China from 24 -26 October 2014,  where he delivered a paper on "Integrated Public Management: A Theoretical and Practical Analysis in The South African  Governance Context". The paper was delivered under the theme of "Good Governance". Apart from the critical analysis of the existing integrated policies and practices in South Africa, the paper concludes with specific strategies regarding improved integrated collaboration between the public and private sectors (Public-Private Partnerships) and the three spheres of government (Public-Public cooperation)within the South African context. The paper won the "Award for the 2014 ICPA Best Theory Paper" received for the 2014 ICPA Conference out of 679 International academic and practical papers submitted for the conference, of which 154 were published. The School of Public Leadership would like to congratulate Prof Frederik Uys for this wonderful achievement.

​Professor Frederik Uys had the opportunity to attend the 10^th International Conference on Public Administration (ICPA)  which was held in Chengdu, China from 24 -26 October 2014,  where he delivered a paper on "Integrated Public Management: A Theoretical and Practical Analysis in The South African  Governance Context". The paper was delivered under the theme of "Good Governance". Apart from the critical analysis of the existing integrated policies and practices in South Africa, the paper concludes with specific strategies regarding improved integrated collaboration between the public and private sectors (Public-Private Partnerships) and the three spheres of government (Public-Public cooperation)within the South African context. The paper won the "Award for the 2014 ICPA Best Theory Paper" received for the 2014 ICPA Conference out of 679 International academic and practical papers submitted for the conference, of which 154 were published. The School of Public Leadership would like to congratulate Prof Frederik Uys for this wonderful achievement.

​Professor Frederik Uys had the opportunity to attend the 10^th International Conference on Public Administration (ICPA)  which was held in Chengdu, China from 24 -26 October 2014,  where he delivered a paper on "Integrated Public Management: A Theoretical and Practical Analysis in The South African  Governance Context". The paper was delivered under the theme of "Good Governance". Apart from the critical analysis of the existing integrated policies and practices in South Africa, the paper concludes with specific strategies regarding improved integrated collaboration between the public and private sectors (Public-Private Partnerships) and the three spheres of government (Public-Public cooperation)within the South African context. The paper won the "Award for the 2014 ICPA Best Theory Paper" received for the 2014 ICPA Conference out of 679 International academic and practical papers submitted for the conference, of which 154 were published. The School of Public Leadership would like to congratulate Prof Frederik Uys for this wonderful achievement.

The African Doctoral Academy (ADA) hosted 25 doctoral students for a week-long seminar on Research to Policy to Practice during the first week of January 2015. These young scholars, representing 20 nationalities, are part of the Southern African Young Scientists Summer Programme (SA-YSSP) – an initiative of the National Research Foundation (NRF www.nrf.ac.za/), Department of Science and Technology (DST) and the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA http://www.iiasa.ac.at/). In 2014, the ADA presented a similar policy seminar. Based on its success, the ADA was approached to present this second seminar.  

The young scientists explored the increasingly important domain of science communication with well-known science communicator Ms Marina Joubert, to assist in communicating not only to the public and media, but also to policy makers and potential funders. In addition, aspects of bridging the research-to-policy-to-practice gap was led by Prof Alice Pell (Cornell University) and Dr Lindiwe Sibanda (FANRPAN http://www.fanrpan.org/).

The seminar culminated with a high level policy dialogue facilitated by the DST and the NRF, with prominent participants from the science and technology community in South Africa, including Dr Phil Mjwara, Director-General of DST, Ms Malebona Precious Matsoso, Director-General of the Department of Health, and the CEOs of the SA Medical Research Council, Human Sciences Research Council and Agricultural Research Council. The Permanent Secretary in the Office of the President of Botswana, Ms Botshelo Mathuba, represented the Southern African Development Community in these discussions. Sessions focused on strategic policy discussions in the areas of water, food security, energy, health and agriculture.

A high-level roundtable by heads of research councils and government, led by the DG of DST, formed part of the policy dialogue, to determine the future investment strategy of South Africa in systems analysis capacity. Prof Frans Swanepoel, Director of the ADA, serves on South Africa's National Member Organisation to IIASA.

The SA-YSSP is an annual three-month initiative that contributes to the establishment, growth and enhancement of high level strategic research networks internationally. Launched in 2011 by Minster Naledi Pandor, SA-YSSP develops capacity in systems analysis at the PhD, postdoctoral and supervisory levels through research conducted in the areas of the DST grand challenges, and aligned with current research programmes at IIASA. The overall programme is hosted by the University of the Free State, this third year of the 3-month course brought together 22 scholars from 20 nationalities.

Photo – the SA-YSSP delegates, presenters and members of the DST and NRF.

Prof Aslam Fataar of Stellenbosch University's Faculty of Education has recently been recognised for his outstanding service to the academic study of education, as well as his service in this sector. He was awarded a Medal of Honour by the Education Association of South Africa (EASA), an inclusive organisation of academics, researchers, and practitioners who all prioritise educational research, particularly in South Africa.

Prof Fataar, currently Vice Dean: Research in the Education Faculty, started his academic career as a junior lecturer in 1995 at the University of the Western Cape (UWC). He also previously taught high school in Lotus River for six years. He completed his MA in 1992 and PhD in 1999 at UWC, has served as a Visiting Professor at Ohio University in 1999 and did a Fulbright Research Scholarship at Illinois University from August 2005 until June 2006. 

Prof Fataar, also an NRF B-rated scholar, said he is humbled by this recognition. "This is an unexpected honour for the work that I've been doing over the last 20 years in my capacity as an education-based academic.  I'm humbled by the honour that my academic peers bestowed on me. I pay particular tribute to all my colleagues over the years at UWC and SU, and the various associations that I've been involved with," he said.

He added that the award places a responsibility on him to keep focused on producing cutting-edge research scholarship and, "importantly, to continue to contribute to the development of other academics and students".

His first published book in 2011 focuses on Education Policy Development in the South African transition. He also does active service work on two UNESCO commissions, one is the UNESCO Country Commission on educational development in Southern Africa and the other is the Global City Network initiative based in Hamburg. 

Prof Fataar was particularly commended by EASA for his service to education academia, especially his development work in various education associations, his chief editorship of the accredited journal, the Southern African Review of Education, and his leadership role in the establishment of the South African Education Research Association of which he is the current President.

And what would his advice be to junior academics? "I would suggest that they imbue their work with a combination of passion, integrity, and an ongoing commitment to research relevance. I'd advise them not to take shortcuts, or become overawed by performative requirements for producing thin and unremarkable academic outputs. 

"Establishing productive academic and professional rhythms are key to becoming a scholar of high repute, and they should strive to do rigorous research, write in respected peer reviewed journals and work towards writing a monograph.  A modicum of modesty and the willingness to learn are important for keeping one grounded and connected to a range of academic, professional and community networks," he added.

Antiretroviral treatment (ART) has changed the lives of people with HIV. An AIDS diagnosis used to be a death sentence, but today, with ART, it can be managed like any other chronic disease, and as a result people with HIV are living long, healthy lives.

With this in mind, many couples affected by HIV are opting to have children but are faced with the challenge of how to conceive without putting their health and the health of their unborn child at risk.

"Access to regular fertility treatment is very limited, and if you are HIV-positive it is even scarcer," says Dr Thabo Matsaseng, a fertility expert with the Department Obstetrics and Gynaecology at Stellenbosch University's Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMHS), whose unit at Tygerberg Hospital offers fertility services to couples where one or both partners are HIV positive.

"Many people ask why an HIV-positive person would want to have children, but with antiretroviral treatment their prognosis is as good as someone with a chronic illness such as diabetes, so there really is no argument. And ethically speaking, as long as both partners are protected and the baby is safe, you are actually doing good," said Matsaseng at the start of Reproductive Health Month, which is commemorated in February.

Couples where one (sero-discordant) or both (concordant) partners are HIV positive are encouraged to practice safe sex to avoid HIV transmission to an uninfected partner, or co-transmission with the different strains of HIV.

Natural conception won't occur with protected intercourse and couples need expert guidance if they want to stay safe and become pregnant. Fortunately there are options available to them.

Healthy concordant couples where both partners are on ART, have CD4 counts above 350, undetectable viral loads (which indicate that they are less infectious) and no open wounds on their genital area can have timed unprotected intercourse when the woman is ovulating and be at very low risk of co-transmission.

Timed unprotected intercourse is also an option for sero-discordant couples as long as the infected partner has a low viral load, high CD4 count and no open wounds in the genital area. But not everyone is comfortable taking this calculated risk, and other options, such as self-insemination or artificial insemination, are also available. If the couple still struggles to conceive they may be experiencing fertility problems due to tubal damage or other causes and in vitro fertilisation should be offered.

Once the woman is pregnant, the next step is to reduce the chance of transmission from an infected mother to her unborn child. This is achieved by placing the mother on ART and taking certain precautions at birth –if the mother's virus is undetected, her CD4 count is high, and there are no other complications, she can give birth naturally. But when the mother's viral load is high or CD4 count low, a caesarean section is advised to minimise the chance of infecting the baby.

After birth the baby is placed on treatment for at least six weeks, at which time he or she will be tested for HIV.

Matsaseng and his team are one of only a handful of places offering affordable fertility services to HIV-positive patients in the public sector.

"People without options take unnecessary risks to get pregnant. We believe that the greater the access to treatment, the more people will be safe from infection, and the closer we are to reaching the Millennium Development Goal 5 of reducing new HIV infection," said Matsaseng.

​​The food security challenge in sub-Saharan Africa is complex and paramount, with approximately 200 million people across the continent currently affected by chronic malnutrition and a population exceeding one billion.

According to the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) this figure is expected to more than double by 2050.

It is against this background that the public executive development and training company of the University of Stellenbosch Business School, USB Executive Development (USB-ED) and the University of Stellenbosch Food Security Initiative has joined forces to present a programme in Managing Food Security as a development opportunity.

The programme is to be presented from 2 to 5 March 2015 in Cape Town.

The Food Security Initiative, with the focus on three key areas of sustainable production for safe and nutritious food, utilisation of safe and nutritious food and post-harvest optimization, is part of the Stellenbosch University’s HOPE Project. The aim of the project is to create sustainable solutions to some of South Africa’s and Africa’s most pressing challenges.

Head of open programmes at USB-ED, Willemien Law, says the programme is a first for Africa, providing participants with a learning experience that is both theoretical and practical.

“Food security and the management of it provides a growing opportunity for producers and retailers, with Africa's increasingly urban population purchasing food on an ever greater scale. For those working across the food system, it is a huge challenge to ensure enough safe, nutritious and culturally appropriate food that minimises waste and copes with the economic and climatic stresses.

“Addressing the challenges of the food system requires producers, managers, retailers, directors and policy makers to understand the changing context of the food system. Failure to understand the context will result in inefficiency, waste, poor service delivery, unsafe or even insufficient food,” Law says.

Sustainable development promotes the idea that social, environmental, and economic progress is attainable within the limits of our earth's natural resources. It approaches everything in the world as being connected through space, time and duality of life.

This connectivity is critical to thinking about the food system and, in managing food security, it needs to be addressed and managed within the framework of sustainable development.

There is a critical knowledge and skills gap in understanding the various food system pressures, such as land reform, governance, production and consumption trends, climate change, quotas and the availability of affordable safe, nutritious food to those who are food insecure.

Understanding the food system challenges enables people to undertake accurate scenario planning and manage risks in order to develop adaptation and change management plans.

For more information visit the Managing Food Security programme page.

​​​Prof Wim de Villiers, Dean of the University of Cape Town's (UCT) Faculty of Health Sciences, was appointed the new Maties Rector and Vice-Chancellor by the Stellenbosch University (SU) Council earlier today.

Watch video.

De Villiers (55), a Matie alumnus and medical doctor who studied and worked in England and America for 24 years, succeeds Prof Russel Botman, who passed away unexpectedly in June. He becomes the University's 12th rector (although the title of this post has changed a number of times over the past few years). He will take office in 2015, but the exact date is not known yet [1 April has since been confirmed]. In the meantime, Chief Operating Officer Prof Leopoldt Van Huyssteen will stay on as acting Rector and Vice-Chancellor.

"I feel honoured and am very thankful for this opportunity," De Villiers said about his appointment. "Stellenbosch is a jewel in the crown of higher education in South Africa, and with the right leadership and good teamwork we can reach new heights, both locally and internationally."

Mr George Steyn, Chairperson of the SU Council, said De Villiers's appointment heralds a new era for the University. "We are looking forward to Prof De Villiers breaking new ground – also in the run-up to our centenary in 2018. Not only is he an excellent academic and manager, but he has the necessary insight and vision to be a worthy successor to Prof Botman."

De Villiers was "born and bred in Stellenbosch", the youngest child of the late Prof AB de Villiers, who would later become Dean of Law at SU, and Mrs Gera de Villiers (née Klomp) of Kroonstad. He matriculated from Paul Roos Gymnasium in 1977 with top marks in the then Cape Province, and passed his MBChB at SU cum laude. He received the Francie Van Zijl and Chancellor's medals for academic achievement.

He decided to "spread his wings" and obtained a DPhil in Immunology at Oxford University, England, in 1995. He then went to America to gain more experience – at the University of Kentucky Medical Centre in Lexington. He later also obtained a master's degree in health-care management from Harvard University.

"I thought I would stay for 18 months, but it turned out to be 18 years! It was worthwhile, though."

In the USA De Villiers practised as a gastroenterologist and also established himself as a respected researcher in this field. He was included in the publication Best Doctors in America, and held a number of senior positions at the University of Kentucky, including Head of Gastroenterology, and Administrative Head in the UK HealthCare organisation with an annual budget of more than $1,2 billion.

"Then the pull of the fatherland became too strong to resist," and he accepted the dean's post in Cape Town in July 2013. Now he is looking forward to the next chapter in his career.

"I have a long association with Stellenbosch, and am pleased to make a contribution to my alma mater. I come from far, but am also from here. I received a wonderful education and had many opportunities thanks to Stellenbosch. Now it is my responsibility to plough back."

De Villiers sees SU as a "mature university" that has to "compete globally". He is impressed with the fact that Maties moved into the top 300 universities on the Times Higher Education rankings for 2014/15.

"I realise that rankings are problematic in certain respects, but they are the global academic currency of our time. By focusing on our strengths we can reach even higher. The SU brand is undervalued."

He supports academic excellence in all three of the University's core activities – research, learning and teaching, as well as community interaction – but is also in favour of differentiation.

"Each university cannot do everything. We must distinguish ourselves through excellent research that is locally relevant and globally competitive. We also need to increase our number of postgraduate students."

He believes that the University's new policy on multilingualism, which was adopted by the University Council on 22 November and makes provision for increasing the lecture offering in both Afrikaans and English, will help attract more international students and lecturers.

"We must just make sure that the language policy and plan are implemented correctly. I realised overseas what Afrikaans means to me, so I am glad that we are extending it academically – but this is also necessary for English, which provides access to the rest of the world."

De Villiers wants students to receive an excellent education that will give them a competitive advantage as graduates in a rapidly changing world. The latest technology will have to be harnessed to this end, because virtual learning and teaching are becoming increasingly important.

"At the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, there is a slogan on the wall: 'The interest of the patient is the only interest'. We could just as well adapt this to, 'The interest of the student is the only interest'."

De Villiers believes Maties should offer a student experience that is "pleasant, welcoming and hospitable" – "in an inclusive environment". He is "committed to continued transformation to address the inequalities of the past", and supports the University's Institutional Intent and Strategy.

"I am enthusiastic about the path on which Prof Russel Botman placed SU, and find the University's Vision 2030 inspirational. Implementation will no doubt come with its challenges, but it will be an honour for me to lead this process."

De Villiers regards himself as an optimist: "I see the glass as being half full, not half empty". He says he is a "team player who listens well and consults widely". He also knows that "in the end someone needs to take the difficult decisions", but realises that leading a large institution "is a long-distance race, not a sprint".

De Villiers likes to stay fit. "I discovered marathons in my middle age and have run the 'Big 5' – Boston, New York, London, Chicago and Berlin". He also enjoys mountain biking. He is married to Catherine, and they have two daughters and a son – Katusha (33), Braam (30) and Gera (26) – as well as two grandchildren.

Steyn thanked all the candidates: "In this process the Selection Committee was in the fortunate position to compile an impressive shortlist of highly-qualified candidates. We appreciate the efforts of everyone and the time they devoted to Stellenbosch through their applications, preparations and presentations."

Photographer: Anton Jordaan

"Stellenbosch University is most pleased with its new position among the top 300 universities in the world according to the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2014-15. We remain however, as was the case with the Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings published recently, aware of the fact that a position on the international rankings must be seen in a very specific context."

This is according to Prof Leopoldt van Huyssteen, acting Rector and Vice-Chancellor of Stellenbosch University (SU) in reaction to the University (SU) moving into the top 300 universities in the world (in the bracket #276 - 300) after it was placed in the general bracket #301-350 in 2013.

With the announcement of the QS ranking  last week, Prof Van Huyssteen said that the University maintains a nuanced approach to the rankings, "given the current realities of the University, our country and our continent as well as the methodology of the various rankings of which there are differences of opinion.

"The fact that Stellenbosch is included in some of the most well-known rankings, is telling  of a University that is receiving international recognition for the quality and stature of its teaching and research. In this regard Stellenbosch University has the highest number of weighted research outputs per academic staff member in South Africa.

"Our clear point of departure is still that we do not compromise on our academic excellence, that we put quality first, and that we do not model our programmes and academic output in such a way that we try to influence our ranking in an artificial manner," Prof Van Huyssteen added.

The Times Higher Education World University Rankings, powered by Thomson Reuters, are the world's most comprehensive global league tables, using 13 separate performance indicators to examine a university's strengths against all its core missions – research, knowledge transfer, international outlook and, uniquely among global rankings, the teaching environment.

Over the last few years, Stellenbosch University is include in among others The Times Higher Education World University Rankings, the Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) world rankings and the Leiden ranking.

• Click here for more information.
  

​Dr Dunn-Coetzee who has deligently served the university for a significant number of years wes a Deputy Director of the Centre for Student Communities for 4 years prior to the appointment and is currently serving as a Visiting Head of Aurora PSO.

​A new book Ebola Prevention and Control written by Dr Angela Dramowski and Prof Shaneen Methar will soon help healthcare workers in especially low-resourced areas to combat Ebola.

This dreaded disease has wreaked havoc in West Africa, killing thousands of people and severely straining the medical resources of the affected countries. Although South Africa has been spared an Ebola outbreak, we should remain vigilant and increase our level of preparedness against the disease.

In this regard, Ebola Prevention and Control could offer some valuable practical guidelines to deal with the disease, says Dramowski who is a Paediatric Infectious Diseases specialist affiliated with the Division of Paediatric Infectious Diseases in the Department of Paediatrics and Child Health at Stellenbosch University (SU)'s Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences. Her co-author, Prof Shaheen Mehtar, is a retired international expert in the prevention and control of infections.

Ebola Prevention and Control is part of the Bettercare series which addresses the need for continuing education for health professionals. It was written with funding from SU's Rural Medical Education Partnership Initiative (SURMEPI) and produced in collaboration with the Academic Unit for Infection Prevention and Control at Tygerberg Hospital and the Infection Control Africa Network.

The publication was edited by Prof Dave Woods, a retired neonatologist (a paediatrician who provides medical care to new-born babies) and the editor-in-chief of the renowned Perinatal Education Programme.

Dramowski says Ebola Prevention and Control was written to prepare and help healthcare workers to manage patients with viral haemorrhagic fevers, particularly Ebola. It also focuses on the protection of health care workers in areas where there is an outbreak of the disease.

"It is critical that all healthcare facilities know how to manage a potential viral haemorrhagic fever case and have undergone 'Ebola preparedness' training – as transmission can occur even in well-resourced facilities whose staff are unprepared."

Dramowski says that although the book focuses mainly on prevention of disease transmission to healthcare workers and patients, it also contains chapters covering the virology (study of viruses), epidemiology (the patterns, causes and effects of diseases in different populations) and clinical management of haemorrhagic diseases such as Ebola.

• Ebola Prevention and Control is available at Bettercare  and can be downloaded for free at www.bettercare.co.za/books/ebola-prevention-control.

​