[Extract from message from Minister of Higher Education and Training, Hon. Dr BE Nzimande]: It gives me pleasure to provide support to the International Education Association of South Africa’s (IEASA) 9th edition of the Study South Africa publication. The focus of this edition, which is Higher Education and Development in South Africa, is most appropriate today as South Africa continuously strives to ensure that higher education remains relevant and responsive to the developmental needs of the country. To this end, we always have to bear in mind that South Africa is a developing country, and as such still confronts challenges such as poverty and under-development. These challenges are characteristic of most developing countries, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. Thus, our higher education sector, through its core functions of teaching, research, and community engagement, should seek to address these issues especially as they affect the poor and other vulnerable members of our society. Since we became a democratic state in 1994, South Africa has gone a long way to transform and restructure our higher education system to ensure amongst others equity with regard to the demographics of our staff and student population. The gender and racial profile of our students has improved significantly over the years to the extent that we now have black and female students constituting the majority at our institutions, especially at undergraduate level. It is also pleasing to note that our institutions enjoy good international standing. South African researchers and institutions continue to engage in research collaborations with their peers and counterparts around the world, and thus, are integral parts of research programmes and networks. With respect to student mobility, our higher education institutions continue to attract large numbers of international students, particularly from other parts of Africa. In 2007 the number of international students enrolled at our institutions was counted at 59 209, a significant increase from 44 439 in 2000. About 85% of these students originate from the African continent, more specifically the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region. Several factors account for the increase in the number of international students coming to South Africa. These include the country’s natural and ecological resources, rich and diverse cultural heritage, and the stable socio-political conditions. The consistent growth in the number of international students seeking to study in South Africa is a positive affirmation on the quality of the country’s institutions and the international reputation of their academics and qualifications. As a country, we see this growth as a positive development as it provides us with the opportunity not only to impart or relate our experiences, but also, to learn from others, and by so doing further enhance the international standing of our higher education system.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:rhodes/vital:28642 |
| Date | January 2009 |
| Creators | International Education Association of South Africa (IEASA), Jooste, Nico |
| Publisher | International Education Association of South Africa (IEASA) |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text, book |
| Format | 104 pages, electronic, application/pdf |
| Rights | No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior permission from IEASA. Permission to use material contained in the university profiles must be obtained directly from the institutions concerned. The information in this publication was compiled from a variety of sources, and opinions expressed should not necessarily be taken to represent those of IEASA or HESA., International Education Association of South Africa (IEASA) |
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