The North-West University’s (NWU’s) School of Social Sciences will be hosting the Planetary Utilisation of Sustainability Strategies (PLUS) Southern African Regional Conference from 11 to 13 September 2023 at its Mahikeng Campus.

The theme of the conference is “Land, landscape, local knowledge, and the pursuit of sustainable ontologies”.

PLUS is a network concerned with aspects of sustainability and is funded by the German Academic Exchange Service. It consists of nine universities in Southern Africa – including the NWU – Latin America and Germany.

Prof Zandri Dickason-Koekemoer, from the North-West University’s (NWU’s) TRADE research focus area was recently inaugurated as full professor.

Her inaugural lecture was titled "Cracking the Code: Investor Behaviour and Financial Decision-Making".

The new Covid-19 subvariant EG.5 – also known as Eris – has made its way into South Africa with the first case reported in Gauteng in mid-August.

This after it crossed the borders of China, the United States, South Korea, Japan, Canada, Australia, Singapore, the United Kingdom, France, Portugal and Spain.

Dr Hazel Mufhandu, senior lecturer and virologist at the North-West University (NWU), tells us more about Eris.

Without quality oversight, output suffers. Without transparency, deception thrives. Misinformation and misinterpretation are propagated to become the norm as fiction becomes indistinguishable from fact. In a developing country such as South Africa that faces a multitude of challenges, this cannot be allowed.

An example of this is an economy that is increasingly struggling to awake from a prolonged slumber caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, rolling blackouts and widespread corruption in institutions fundamental to the health of the country.

“The watershed 15th BRICS Summit that took place in Johannesburg had, to its credit, several runs on the scoreboard by the time it concluded last week.”

Prof Raymond Parsons, economist from the North-West University (NWU) Business School, says while the outcomes were inevitably a complex amalgam of politics, economics and business, the overall BRICS profile and agenda have been taken to the next level.

A recent study conducted by Dr Joan Dikobe from the North-West University’s (NWU’s) School of Nursing Science sheds light on the lived experiences of nurses as they cared for patients diagnosed with Covid-19.

As frontline healthcare workers, they are fundamental to the healthcare system, and play a crucial role in ensuring the continuity and quality of care to the patient.

Dr Dikobe says the study aimed to examine the physical, psychological, and social experiences of nurses as they provided care to Covid-19 patients in the North West province.

The North-West University’s (NWU’s) Faculty of Health Sciences is proud to host its Community Engagement Colloquium from 2 to 4 October 2023 at its Vanderbijlpark Campus.

In an intriguing joint announcement, the Walter Sisulu and North-West universities unveiled the astounding results of their preclinical trials for a groundbreaking combination vaccine against tuberculosis (TB) and Covid-19. The universities reported an unprecedented 100% protection in vaccinated animals – a significant step forwards in the unrelenting battle against tuberculosis, one of the world's most devastating diseases.

The lack of qualified nurses is placing a stranglehold on the public health sector in South Africa, but through its commitment to bettering the lives of all South Africans, the North-West University (NWU) is helping to loosen this suffocating grip.

A recent study by the South African Nursing Council (SANC) estimates that there is only one nurse for every 218 patients in the country, with a need for tens of thousands more.

Prof Rose Hayeshi, associate professor at the North-West University’s (NWU’s) DSI/NWU Preclinical Drug Development Platform has just returned from the United Kingdom after a week-long innovation boot camp at the University of Oxford.

Prof Hayeshi was one of the 10 participants selected to deliver demo pitches, after which her presentation was chosen as one of the top five pitches.