Apply For MembershipThe instability within the Research Division in 2010/2011 had a negative effect on research outputs: The AISA Research and Publications Committee approved nine research proposals in this reporting year. Nine researchers attended to fieldwork in eight African countries, namely, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Cameroon, Burundi, Ethiopia, Botswana, Ghana and South Africa. Fieldwork is conducted solely for the purpose of collecting primary empirical data that is later collated with other existing data sets to produce well-informed deductions for publications and policy briefs.
AISA’s research output takes various forms, namely, journal articles, books, book chapters, occasional papers, monographs, policy briefs and media appearances. Journal articles and policy briefs emanate from both fieldwork and commissioned work. In this reporting year, a total of 91 outputs – 67 publications (published and accepted for publication), and 22 publications (submitted for publication to various publishing houses) – were recorded, which was less than the anticipated output of 120 publications.
This can be attributed to the fact that the first quarter started with only six researchers and one assistant, who were joined by four new researchers and an assistant researcher in the second quarter. The resignation of the Executive Director Research and experienced research administrators also contributed to this inadequate performance. Most of the researchers were only able to undertake fieldwork at the end of the second quarter and beginning of the third quarter, while two researchers only completed their fieldwork at the end of the last quarter. There were three book projects that diverted the attention of researchers from journal publications to book chapter production. Only 20 per cent of AISA publications were submitted to external publishers (i.e. not submitted to the AISA Publications Division for publication in AISA’s accredited journal, Africa Insight).
Media appearances take the form of print, radio, television or electronic media interviews. Interactions with media ensure the dissemination of information to the South African public. In 2010/2011 AISA provided information to South Africans through 40 radio broadcasts on popular stations such as SAFM, Motsweding, Lesedi and Ligwalagwala. AISA’s visibility also increased through 19 television appearances discussing current African affairs, ranging from governance and democracy to peace and security issues. The North and West African uprisings were deliberated and debated by AISA researchers in print (daily and weekly newspapers, and magazines) and electronic media (online journals) as well as in multi-media interviews.
Three book projects – linked to international conferences that AISA had organised with external parties – were completed and submitted to the Publications Division. These included HIV/AIDS, gender, human security and violence in Southern Africa sponsored by AISA, Social Sciences Research Council and the Rockefeller Foundation; Cooperative diplomacy, regional stability and national interests: The Nile River and riparian states and Regional integration in Africa: Bridging the North Sub-Saharan divide. Three other conferences/book projects are in the pipeline to be completed in the coming year.
Researchers presented 40 papers at international conferences during this reporting year. The areas covered were science and technology (renewable energy sources, land reform and agricultural production, food security, remote sensing and Geographical Information Systems); sustainable development (indigenous rights and developments in small communities); peace and security (regional peace and security systems in Africa, conflict trends and dilemmas of conflict prevention, CĂ´te d’Ivoire’s security and political impasse); governance and democracy (African continental integration, international relations versus international laws, Africa- China relations, South Africa in the BRICS organization– Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – and Africa and the Diaspora); and knowledge transfer (analysis of the Mo Ibrahim Africa Report 2010, African think tanks, African scholarship and development of intellectual leadership, cultural values in education and human rights).
Also of importance to report was the number of special AISA lectures and conferences hosted during 2010/2011. These included the Archie Mafeje Memorial Lecture, which took place on 9 March 2011 at Walter Sisulu University, Mthatha. The theme for this year’s memorial lecture, which attracted eminent speakers from academia and the private sector, was Preserving an African identity: The life and times of Prof. Archie Mafeje.
The AISA Young Graduates and Scholars’ (AYGS) Conference with the theme Peace and security as requirements for Africa’s development, was held from 24–25 March 2011 at Birchwood Hotel, Benoni. The AYGS conference drew graduates and scholars from Southern African Development Community (SADC) universities, and presentations covered all five disciplines (governance and democracy, peace and security, sustainable development, science and technology, and knowledge transfer and skills development) being researched at AISA.
AISA’s other capacity-building project, the Campus Lecture Series, allows researchers to share their field experiences with students in South African Universities in an effort to transfer knowledge and develop research skills at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels. Presentations at the universities of Limpopo, Venda, North West and Zululand covered the CĂ´te d’Ivoire security situation; technology intervention as a means of meeting development needs; remote sensing and Geographical Information Systems (GIS); indigenous rights and development in Kenya; mixed methods research in peace building; and a case study of Burundi. AISA also participated fully in the Professor Bernard M Magubane at 80: The celebration of a life conference, where AISA researchers made presentations and organised a panel discussion on indigenous knowledge systems and African scholarships.
On the subject of capacity building, the Research Division can boast of successfully capacitating six interns to become sound researchers in the areas of Social and Natural Sciences. The division organised a training workshop for all interns and interested staff at AISA. Topics covered were the conceptulisation of research proposals and proposal writing; data collection and analysis; research report writing; and journal article writing and publication. The AISA interns were able to attend and present papers at international conferences, and publish policy briefs. One of the interns completed his Masters degree while at AISA, while another participated as a South African observer in the Sudan referendum in January 2011. This was a valuable experience in exposing our interns to practical issues in the field. We are proud of those who have joined the academia as well as those who have decided to further their education.
