The University of Johannesburg (UJ) in conjunction with the Office of the Director of Development and Fundraising, Ms. Daphney Nemakhavhani, hosted the National Convention Bureau, a unit of South African Tourism, on July 20, 2022.
This was a workshop to share information on funding opportunities for hosting international, regional and local academic conferences. Various UJ faculty and support staff were assessed on funding criteria when making proposals for financial support. Additional support opportunities were detailed, such as bidding for conferences, lobbying association members, site inspections and increasing attendance to attract and host meetings, congresses and symposia professional and academic associations.
UJ’s Senior Director of Revenue, Mzwakhe Matukane, welcomed the collaboration with Ms. Amanda Kotze-Nhlapho, Director of the Conventions Office of the South African National Conventions Bureau (SANCB), who will help to showcase UJ’s academic prowess and advance alternative revenue streams. .
Mr. Mzwakhe Matukane stressed the importance of university and government partnerships. “Collaborations between universities and government agencies are important in demonstrating the importance of partnership in addressing societal challenges, especially when the partners mobilize their respective resources by contributing to the social pact that we so badly need.”
The collaboration between the University of Johannesburg and the National Convention Bureau has grown since its inception in 2016.
Ms. Amanda Kotze-Nhlapho added, “The mission of the National Convention Bureau is to help higher education institutions attract conferences by moving people from Zoom to the room, while enriching interactions between people through international and local conferences on site.
Over the years, the partnership has successfully hosted prestigious international and regional conferences, including the Food Security & Safety Conference (FSaS) 2016; the 7th International Conference on Barcodes of Life (iBOL) 2017; the 20th WaterNet WARFSA/GWP 2019 conference; and the upcoming Kettil Bruun 2023 Society Conference.
Such strategic collaborations help higher education institutions like UJ with monetary and in-kind support, helping to showcase academic prowess, strengthen institutional research efforts, and profile our experts as leaders in research. revered opinion in their respective fields of expertise.
Additionally, these collaborations encourage and propel UJ to advance the culture of knowledge sharing for the advancement of society through the development of solutions to address societal challenges.
