Finding collaborative solutions in food security
- Wits University
Wits partnered in a project focusing on building capacity and on gender in food security.
Wits University in partnership with southern African and European Higher Education Institutions recently hosted a seminar on an innovative online course and gender related issues in food security and education.
The Networking for Academic Excellence on Agriculture and Food Security (NAEAFS) supported by the European Union and African, Caribbean, and Pacific Group of States project was managed by the Wits Siyakhana Initiative in the School of Geography, Archeology and Environmental Studies (WITs) as the lead institution in partnership with Center for Health Education and Appropriate Health Technologies (Italy); Euro-Mediterranean University (Slovenia); University of Namibia and Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources.
The project was carried out between October 2013 and January 2017 and a closing seminar was recently held at Wits.
Two key outcomes included an accredited online course which provided 26 researchers and lecturers from a range of disciplines with a cross-disciplinary introduction to several key issues in food security and sustainable agriculture in the southern African context.
A second and very important outcome was the production of three country specific reports based on an overview of women’s food security status as well as an account of women’s access to education.
The activities included surveys on gender and food security intervention, labour markets, women participation and women access to quality information and learning, diagnosis and plan elaboration. The outputs included a combined report and the dissemination of the outcomes of the research.
Professor Michael Rudolph, Florian Kroll and Professor Teresa Dirsuweit delivered presentations at the closing seminar. It was attended by the e learning course participants, members of the City of Johannesburg Food and Policy Units, University of Johannesburg, Tswane University of Technology, civil society organisations and NGO’s.
For further information, please contact Professor Michael Rudolph on michael.rudolph@wits.ac.za