A team of second-year students from the Faculty of Law on the Vanderbijlpark Campus of the North-West University (NWU) are this year’s winners in the popular annual NWU Juta Mock Trial competition that took place in Potchefstroom on 15 August.
The latest Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) ranking has placed the North-West University (NWU) among the top eight South African universities in the QS World University Rankings, which were released on 8 June.
Globally, the NWU has been placed in the 1 001 to 1 200 ranking category for the 2022/2023 QS World University Rankings – the same as last year. The NWU’s performance has been consistent in this ranking category for the past four years.
North-West University’s principal and vice-chancellor, Dr Bismark Tyobeka, has been invited by prominent global leaders in nuclear affairs to be a panelist in an international webinar on the role of nuclear and radiology safety in the peaceful applications of nuclear science and technology.
“Oom Danie!” echoes the voice of the young woman from across the street. For a second, eclectic Stellenbosch, where he is walking around, comes to a halt as Danie Hefer turns around. Only a few moments before he was scanning his surroundings for a restaurant, unaware that his lanky frame had attracted the attention of the woman who is now running towards him. With endearing resolve she gives him a hug. Then, after she has relinquished her grip, she thanks him for the role he played in helping her obtain her degree.
During its meeting on 23 June 2022 the North-West University (NWU) Council elected a new chairperson and deputy chairperson.
Mr Bert Sorgdrager, a seasoned legal professional with more than 30 years’ experience in the private sector, was elected as the sixth chairperson of the NWU Council. Mr Obakeng Mongale, an experienced public servant and the current superintendent general for the North West Department of Health, will serve as deputy chairperson.
It is very encouraging that the latest much-better-than-expected gross domestic product (GDP) figures for the first quarter of 2022 show a further strong recovery in the economy following the economic setbacks of the Covid-19 lockdowns and the widespread civil unrest of July 2021.
Prof Raymond Parsons, economist from the Business School of the North-West University (NWU), says the figures that were announced on 7 June 2022 reinforce the 4,9% GDP growth recorded for 2021 as a whole, after the negative -6,4% growth experienced in the previous year.
“The slightly better news on the unemployment front is a welcome trend, as it comes after a prolonged period of persistent deterioration in South African employment levels in recent times.”
In commenting on the latest unemployment figures for the first quarter of 2022, Prof Raymond Parsons, economist from the Business School of the North-West University (NWU), says to a large extent this development follows South Africa’s strong economic recovery in 2021 from the pandemic lockdowns, and should be viewed in the light of the inevitable time lags.
The battle against the scourge of fraud and corruption plaguing South Africa is raging and the country needs a brave new generation of forensic accountants ― of whom there is currently a dire shortage ― if it wants to win the fight.
Disadvantaged youth are at the forefront of the push against corruption through a new partnership that will address the shortage of forensic accountants. The partners are the NWU, the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) and the Thuthuka Education Upliftment Fund (TEUF) of the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA).
The North-West University (NWU) is proud to be a value-driven institution and is currently busy with a campaign to relaunch the values that guide staff, students and other stakeholders.
The campaign kicked off in March 2022 with a cook-off held for the University Management Committee (UMC) and an official launch in the form of a gala evening.
The process leading up to this official launch started a while ago, however, and a lot of hard work has been done to reach this point.
Kicking-off the process
World Intellectual Property Day is annually celebrated on 26 April, under the auspices of the United Nations’ World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO). This year’s theme was “IP and Youth: Innovating for a Better Future”.
This year, the North-West University’s (NWU’s) Technology Transfer and Innovation Support (TTIS) office – who are the custodians of intellectual property (IP) at the university – led the celebrations at the three NWU campuses with fun-filled educational events between 20 April and 12 May.