October is Transport Month in South Africa, but there is not much to celebrate as the country’s economy is paying the price for decades of underinvestment and neglect in its transport system.

Failing roads, crumbling railways and inefficient ports are costing the country billions of rands and undermining its global competitiveness, according to transport analyst Dr Olebogeng Baikgaki of the North-West University (NWU).

By Gofaone Motsamai and Phenyo Mokgothu

When aircraft take off from South Africa’s major airports, they do more than connect people with destinations, they also leave behind a growing environmental footprint. The complex relationship between aviation, tourism and climate change is the focus of a recent book chapter by Kgomotso Mereotlhe, a lecturer at the North-West University’s (NWU’s) Mahikeng Campus in the School of Tourism Management.

With youth unemployment continuing to challenge South Africa’s future, the North-West University (NWU) is showing that entrepreneurship is key to turning the tide. Through its bhive Enterprise Development Centre (EDC), the NWU hosted Student Entrepreneurship Week (SEW) 2025 from 29 September to 3 October across all three campuses.

Under the theme “Dream it. Build it. Live it.”, the week reminded students that they have the power to be job creators, not just job seekers.

A recent visit by North-West University (NWU) Professors Ephrem Redda and Prof Marko van Deventer to the Nicolaus Copernicus University (NCU) in Toruń, Poland represented a significant step in strengthening international academic collaboration.

Hosted by the NCU’s Faculty of Economic Sciences and Management, the visit underlined the importance of cross-institutional partnerships in higher education and demonstrated the potential for meaningful scholarly exchange and cooperation.

Book launches represent important academic milestones. On 23 September 2025, the Faculty of Theology at the North-West University (NWU) hosted a book launch and celebration that highlighted the value of international research and academic exchange.

As South Africa intensifies efforts to address climate change while striving for inclusive economic growth, a fundamental question remains: Can we tax carbon without taxing our future prosperity?

In a comprehensive study titled “Analysis of Carbon Tax, Carbon Emissions, and Economic Growth in South Africa”, North-West University (NWU) researcher Dr Victor Mbua Mofema provides timely answers to this pressing policy dilemma.

The North-West University (NWU) hosted the International Tourism Week Symposium from 9 to 11 September 2025 at The Willows Garden Hotel in Potchefstroom. The symposium brought together academics, students, and industry experts from across the globe to discuss the latest trends, challenges, and innovations shaping the future of tourism

The North-West University (NWU) recently hosted an exclusive alumni reunion at the prestigious Seven Villa Hotel & Spa in Sandton, Johannesburg – a gathering that transcended the traditional notion of reunions to become a powerful think tank on the future of finance, trade and logistics.

Organised by the NWU Alumni Relations Office in partnership with the schools of Accounting and Economic Sciences, the event convened distinguished alumni, top-tier industry executives and academic leaders for an evening of strategic dialogue, insight and high-impact networking.

Man the gates, the tourists are coming! Popular European destinations such as Barcelona, Paris and Venice are being laid to siege by an unrelenting influx of tourists, prompting residents to take to the streets in protest, sometimes disruptively so. It is a tourism meltdown, and an untenable situation for those living in the very cities tourists flock to.

Budget airlines, cheap transport and low-cost accommodation have fueled this migration headache, and many of the discontented would scoff at the idea of us South Africans celebrating Tourism Month in September.

By Gofaone Motsamai

Stitch by stitch, management student Joel Malesela Khoela has created a tailoring business whose sewing is so skilled that nurses of the future trust him to produce their protective attire.

His company, Joel Stitch by Stitch TA Patrao (Pty) Ltd, recently completed a large tailoring order for the Faculty of Health Sciences at the North-West University’s (NWU’s) Mahikeng Campus.