UFH and EC COGTA Collaborate to strengthen economic development in the province

A shared vision to strengthen the economy of the Eastern Cape has culminated in a collaboration between the University of Fort Hare and the Provincial Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) to develop research on the role of Local Economic Development (LED) agencies as drivers of economic development in the Province.

The collaboration between the institution and the government was sealed 10 November 2022 with a memorandum of understanding (MOU) by UFH Vice Chancellor, Prof. Sakhela Buhlungu and the Head of CoGTA, Mr Andile Fani.

According to the agreement, the partners will work together for the next 36 months (three years) to conduct research and facilitate public engagements on matters around LED. The studies will seek to explore the agencies efficacy and create a body of knowledge to inform policy decisions. The main objective of the MOU is to formalise a partnership where UFH will conduct research on the 11 provincial local economic development agencies, their track record and how they could be made more effective as agents of local economic development in municipalities.

The event was attended by CoGTA MEC Zolile Williams and the senior academics from UFH.

The research will be conducted by three researchers from the University’s Faculty of Management and Commerce: Prof

Willie Chinyamurindi, Prof Munacinga Simatele and Prof Forget Kapingura.

Bhulungu stated that the University welcomed the opportunity to work with the department, the development agencies and the municipalities and said that because the University’s area of specialisation is research, there is a definite role to play in terms of issues of skills development in research and teaching.

In stating the university’s interest in the collaboration, he described it as two-fold:

• The university is ‘citizens’ of three towns, and listed their campuses in East London (6,500 students), Bhisho ( 800 students) and Alice (9,000 students). As citizens they were also affected by service delivery successes and failures.

• The University is a major contributor to the local economy, paying rates and taxes, and an employee of more than 2,000 staff members.

The MEC of CoGTA said UFH acknowledged the value of the collaboration and stated that based on the findings of the research done by UFH, the department would now be better placed to analyse the efficacy of development agencies.

Fani acknowledged that the current research on the development agencies was dated and said that he looked forward to the new research findings and implementing the outcomes of the findings. He said that the new finding would give the Department direction going forward.

He appealed to municipalities with development agencies to collaborate, avail themselves to and support the researchers and that the Department municipalities and their agencies should become “champions of those outcomes.”

“If there are certain things that need confirmation, we are going to be available to sign off those documents,” he said.

CoGTA Head of Department, Mr Andile Fani; University of Fort Hare Deputy Vice Chancellor, Dr Nthabi Toale-Mjimba; UFH Professor Sakhela Buhlungu; and Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs MEC, Zolile Williams