The symposium, at which DIRCO Deputy Minister, Mr Alvin Botes, will give the keynote address, puts a particular focus on the country’s role on the continent as the former Chair of Africa Union (AU) and globally while serving on the United Nations Security Council.
Having spearheaded the country’s recently concluded tenures at both these organizations, DIRCO is leading an initiative to take these reflections to institutions of higher learning, with Mandela University’s Faculty of Humanities to host the inaugural symposium.
In addition, the University and DIRCO are exploring a continued strategic partnership.
“We are extremely honoured to be hosting Deputy Minister Alvin Botes and his delegation at our University for such an important conversation. We are also quite excited at the possibility of a sustained partnership and look forward to exploring various areas of collaboration,” said the Executive Dean of the Faculty of Humanities, Prof Pamela Maseko.
As the University pursues its efforts towards revitalising humanities, engagement remains at the heart of this work.
“The important aspect of the revitalisation of Humanities in our University is engaging with entities such as DIRCO with the purpose of establishing and sustaining mutually strategic partnerships. Our commitment to implementing this and the University’s 2030 vision requires that we embark on these joint initiatives as the foundation for transformative and mutually beneficial relationships,” said Prof Maseko.
Discussants to the symposium are University of Pretoria’s Department of Political Sciences senior lecturer, Dr Sithembile Mbete, and Chief Executive Officer of the African Peer Review Mechanism, Prof Eddie Maloka.
