The critical issue of food security in Africa was one of the main topics of discussion at the Joint International Conference on Science and Technology for Development in Africa.

The three-day conference ends today and is a partnership between CPUT, Bondo University College in Kenya and the University of Ilorin in Nigeria.

University of Ilorin’s Prof Kolawole Ayorinde presented a paper on the dire situation of food shortages in Africa and how technology and science needs to step up to save the continent.

Prof Ayorinde urged the academics at the conference to make sure the groundbreaking ideas they develop within their various institutions make it to poor farmers.

He also painted a hopeful picture of a continent which was capable of feeding itself but still relies on around 30 billion dollars worth of imported food per year.

“That Africa depends on others to feed her is not only sad but unfortunate,” he says.

“In summary, we have a large workforce, imminent scientists and cultivatable land so why do we need assistance?”

Prof Ayorinde concluded by pointing out that so called “Asian Tiger” countries like Japan and Vietnam were successfully merging science and technology to feed their own people.

“The reality is that when people do not have food they do one of three things- revolt, migrate or die and of course none of these are situations we want,” he told delegates.

By LAUREN KANSLEY

Written by CPUT News
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

This week researchers from across the continent will descend on CPUT for the Joint International Conference on Science and Technology for Development in Africa.

The conference, which gets underway tomorrow, is being organised by CPUT, Bondo University College in Kenya and the University of Ilorin in Nigeria. 

The conference will explore technological innovations, environmental issues as well as agriculture and food security.  Researchers will also report on studies related to policy, governance, education and human capacity matters in Africa.

Head of the local organising committee, Prof Michael McPherson says the conference will provide researchers with an opportunity to network and share their research activities.

Prof McPherson says it is also a perfect opportunity for CPUT to establish research collaborations with their counterparts in other African countries in order to meet the university’s vision of impacting on the rest of the continent.

The conference will end on Thursday.

By Candes Keating

Written by CPUT News
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Academics from leading African universities gathered this week at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT) to attend the 2nd U6 International Conference, a consortium of six African universities. The conference’s theme is “Research and Innovation for sustainable development”.

During his opening address, CPUT Vice-Chancellor Dr Prins Nevhutalu said as a university that aims to be at the heart of technology and innovation in Africa, “we cannot successfully achieve that if we do not immerse ourselves in the ambitions and aspirations of Africa as a whole”.

“You all need no convincing of the potential of Africa and African Institutions – and particularly African intelligentsia, which is well represented here. It is this human capital, not just the rich deposits of Gold in Ghana or Platinum in South Africa or oil in Nigeria, or wildlife resources across the African plains, or any of the other natural resources that have made Africa the go-to continent, that will light a fire to propel this giant called Africa forward. It is this human force that has to be used for the good of Africa rather than a force of destruction that we humans have often become to ourselves and our finite environment,” Dr Nevhutalu said.

Professor Is-haq Oloyede, former Vice-chancellor of the University of Ilorin in Nigeria, said the idea of the U6 came as a result of the need for collaboration between African universities. He said when CPUT signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the University of Ilorin, they got to know about other relationships that the two have with other African universities ultimately realising that “your friend’s friend is your friend”. The Vice-Chancellors of these universities finally met to form the U6 from the bilateral relationships they had in February 2012.

Keynote speaker Professor Philip Lloyd spoke about renewable energy and sustainable development. He mentioned that society is faced with the challenge of balancing the social, economic and environmental challenges of sustainability and development. He said while energy is a source of wealth creation, the perceived costs to the environment is overstated. He said there was a gap between what science has discovered and what society stresses about. The conference covered a variety of subjects including Agriculture and Food Sciences, Environmental Issues, Technology Innovation and Energy Efficiency, and Business and Education.

Written by Ilse Fredericks
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

CPUT recently hosted the 8th ‘multidisciplinary ‘U6 Plus International Conference at District Six Campus and this year’s conference was themed: Research, Innovation and Technology for African Development.

The U6 Plus consortium is a collaboration of more than seven universities: CPUT; Jaramogi Oginga University of Science and Technology, Kenya; Kwara State University, Nigeria; The University of The Gambia; University of Cape Coast, Ghana; University of Ilorin, and University of Abuja, both in Nigeria.

The consortium was launched in 2012 at the University of Ilorin, Nigeria and was established to foster academic linkages and educational collaboration among the six universities. The original name, the U6 consortium, reflected the six founding universities; the consortium has since expanded to encompass more than seven universities and is now known as the U6 Plus.

“The success story has been the establishment of the Herbal Research Centre domiciled at the University of Ilorin,” said its current Director, Prof Learnmore Kambizi. The researchers from member institutions have since published 15 scientific articles on a collaborative basis under the U6 Plus consortium. Member institutions host the U6 Plus International Conference on a rotational basis.

The conference was officially opened by the current Chairperson of the U6 Plus Consortium, Vice-Chancellor Prof Chris Nhlapo. High-quality papers were presented at the conference, with all the subthemes covered. The Local Organising Committee (LOC) was well prepared for a hybrid conference. However, 90% of the papers were presented in person. “There was a lot of interest in this conference from many African universities and the pace that was set by CPUT can propel the U6 Plus Consortium to another level,” said Kambizi.

The conference was a huge success as attested to by all the seven vice-chancellors who made their remarks at the closing ceremony. The active involvement of postgraduate students and emerging researchers was evident which “is a good sign for continuity of the consortium. “Just like other departments at CPUT, the Department of Horticulture was well represented with eight papers presented by postgraduate students,” Kambizi noted.

The unwavering support given to the LOC by Nhlapo and the whole CPUT Executive Management of the Cape Peninsula University of Technology “is highly appreciated”. “This kind of support enabled the successful hosting of the 8th U6 Plus Conference in style. Active involvement of LOC members across all our faculties was very conspicuous and this is commendable,” Kambizi remarks. He added that over 40 full papers were submitted to be published in the proceedings of the first U6 Plus International conference.

Written by Aphiwe Boyce

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.