research - The African Mirror

Feb

2024

By GIJSBERT HOOGENDOORN, DANIEL HAMMETT and MUKOVHE MASUTHA

South Africa’s apartheid legacy is still hobbling research – a study of geography shows how

KNOWLEDGE matters. It informs how we think about the world around us. It informs our decisions and government policies, supporting economic growth and development. Knowledge is also power. Certain types of knowledge are given more value than others. This is driven by histories of privilege. In South Africa, apartheid looms large in debates about how knowledge is produced. Though it formally ended 30 years ago, it still influences whose knowledge is considered “right” and whose is sidelined. And this matters in everyday life. For instance, health and medical research and instruction used to focus on white and male bodies. This…

Nov

2020

By The African Mirror

Paying commission to academics reduces the value of research

EDUCATION

MANY universities around the world pay academics to publish their research. Our recent study in South Africa, though, suggests they should be cautious of such practices. SIOUX MCKENNA, Director of Centre for Postgraduate Studies, Rhodes University DR EVELYN MUTHAMA, Postdoctoral Fellow, Rhodes University The country’s Department of Higher Education and Training funds public universities for every article published in academic journals on any of six accredited lists. The lists include journals that meet various quality indicators such as peer review. The idea is that funding will drive the country’s participation in the knowledge economy through its contribution to research. Universities…

Jul

2020

By The African Mirror

Africa’s research capacity is growing

SCIENCE, TECH AND INNOVATION

SAM KINYANJUI, Head of Training & Director, IDeAL, KEMRI Wellcome Trust Research Programme SHARON FONN, Professor of Public Health; Co-Director Consortium for Advanced Research Training in Africa; Panel Member, Private Healthcare Market Inquiry, University of the Witwatersrand The COVID-19 pandemic has put global emergency preparedness under sharp scrutiny. It’s also placed national health systems’ capacity to predict and respond to major emergencies under the microscope. Much of the response to the pandemic is focused on testing, case management and control measures such as personal hygiene, quarantine and social distancing. But in most African countries, these measures are not backed by…