PURCO SA

The chairperson of the National Council of Provinces (NCOP), Thandi Modise, has taken over the reins as Chancellor at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology from former finance minister Trevor Manuel.

The KwaZulu-Natal Research Institute for TB-HIV (K-RITH) and Africa Centre for Population Health have joined to form an exciting new interdisciplinary research institute, called the Africa Health Research Institute.

FormerPresident Thabo Mbeki has been appointed as chancellor of UNISA, the university announced last . The university witnessed one towering figure, Judge Bernard Ngoepe, who served as Unisa’s chancellor with distinction for fifteen years, stepping down.

National Treasury has released the revised Preferential Procurement Regulations, 2017 which were gazetted on Friday 20 January. The regulations were initially promulgated in 2001 and revised in 2011 thus making this the second revision since the initial promulgation.

Human rights crusader Advocate Dumisa Ntsebeza has been appointed as the new chancellor of the University of Fort Hare, reports City Press. Ntsebeza’s appointment follows the death of former sport minister and reverend, Dr Makhenkesi Stofile, who held the position briefly.

The long-standing relationship between PURCO SA and the King’s Hope Development Foundation is as strong as ever. The support given by the Foundation to the community – with the focus on HIV-positive people – is nothing short of miraculous in the face of huge adversity.

The Council of the University of the Free State (UFS) has appointed Prof Francis Petersen as Vice-Chancellor and Rector of the UFS.

MyBroadband.com has reported that Oxford University will be offering a massive open online course (MOOC) from February 2017. The first MOOC course, From Poverty to Prosperity: Understanding Economic Development, is available for free enrolment on edx.org.

In the current volatile environment, financially-strapped universities and colleges need to take proactive steps to keep costs and expenditure down. One of these ways is for PURCO SA members to know about the numerous national contracts signed recently which they can tap into for significant financial benefit.