Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) poses a huge threat to Africa’s and, by extension, the world’s health care systems and should be addressed with haste. This according to Prof Carlos Bezuidenhout, director of the Unit for Environmental Sciences and Management, Microbiology (METSI) at the North-West University’s Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences.

AMR refers to the resistance that microbes develop to certain pharmaceutical drugs.

Prof Lebo Gafane-Matemane and Prof Lusilda Schutte of the North-West University (NWU) were recently recognised by the South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) when they each received a bronze award during the SAMRC’s 9th Scientific Merit Awards gala dinner held in Cape Town on 9 March.

The bronze medals are awarded to scientists who have recently entered the research arena, with at least five years post-PhD experience. While this award is not tied to chronological age, the condition for this award is that researchers should preferably be under the age of 50 years.

"Doing my PhD was an almost indescribable journey with many ups and downs that all contributed to making it an overall enriching experience. There is no denying all the (many) times giving up was the only thought in my mind, just as there’s no denying the affirming moments I felt like I am exactly the right person for this study. I feel motivated to build my future one present moment at a time."

Dr Muzi Matfunjwa, a digital humanities researcher for Siswati at the South African Centre for Digital Language Resources (SADiLaR) at the North-West University (NWU), describes himself as a language activist. He believes in the promotion of African languages, especially Siswati, as an official language and an academic discipline.

Entrepreneurs should deal with challenges in their own communities, conduct thorough research, and protect their intellectual capital on their way to monetising their unique ideas.

They received this advice recently when the North-West University (NWU) hosted the 4th annual Intellectual Property and Technology Commercialisation Colloquium under the theme: “Driving innovation and positioning Intellectual Property Commercialisation for post Covid-19 pandemic.”

The North-West University's (NWU's) Optentia research unit and Corporate Relations and Marketing present the Southern African premiere of “Your Hundred Year Life: A Film about Rethinking Ageing in the 21st Century” at Killarney Cinema on 4 April 2023.

Dr Marelize Vergottini, a senior lecturer in social work at the North-West University (NWU) recently presented a group work framework that is focused on positive discipline for addressing behaviour issues among primary school students from grades 5 to 7.

This was during a social work practice seminar for school social workers hosted by the Gauteng Province Social Development Department on 3 March.

The North-West University (NWU) and the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) signed a memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Friday, 10 March 2023.

This MoU was signed by Prof. Daryl Balia, deputy vice-chancellor for information technology and Potchefstroom Campus operations, alongside Ms Shirley Mlombo, SAHRC provincial manager.

The areas of cooperation for this collaboration include but are not limited to Information sharing, research,advocacy programmatic cooperation, policy formulation, enhancing capacity, investigations and special projects.

Dr Nicolaas Buitendag, a postdoctoral fellow at the North-West University’s (NWU’s) Faculty of Law, recently launched a book titled States of exclusion: A critical systems theory reading of international law.

This open-access scholarly book published by Aosis scrutinises the inclusivity or lack thereof in the historical development of international law.

In the seven-chapter book, Dr Buitendag challenges and problematises the thoughts of many that sovereignty is a good thing that allows communities to take part in international politics.

Rare diseases are more common than you might think. It sounds like an oxymoron, doesn’t it? Not to the 4,1 million South Africans who have been or will be affected by rare diseases in their lifetime. For many it can be a death sentence, for others it is a life-altering diagnosis. Not only is the North-West University (NWU) committed to ensuring that rare diseases are detected as early as possible, but it also has a myriad of initiatives to combat their effects.