The countdown has begun for the 8th edition Research Seminar for academia, researchers, diplomatic corps, senior public servants and representatives from Non-Governmental Organisations (NGO).
The much-awaited Research Seminar will be held at the University of South Africa (UNISA), Pretoria from Tuesday, June 25 to Thursday, June 27, 2024, and will take place under the theme: “A focus on Africa’s state fragility and resilience to exogenous shocks and disasters – sustainability, growth, and development imperatives.”
The theme of the 8th Edition Research Seminar is thus a follow-up to the discussions that took place at the 7th Edition Research Seminar but has a broader focus on Africa’s state fragility and resilience to exogenous shocks and disasters.
Consequently, the theme focusing on Africa’s state fragility and resilience to exogenous shocks and disasters has been brought into sharp focus with researchers and practitioners alike keen to understand the implications of state resilience.
The theme will also focus on how African countries can and should manage, mitigate state fragility and resilience to exogenous shocks and disasters that arise from global incidents, from a multi-dimensional viewpoint.
Last year’s Seminar started by focusing on the imperative of “Leveraging Sustainable Human Resource Management to Enhance Africa’s State Resilience in Times of Crises” which served as the precursor to the current theme.
The focus on state fragility and resilience to shocks and disasters within the sphere of public administration and governance is a multifaceted and proactive endeavour that necessitates a holistic view of governance, one that embraces risk management, adaptability, collaborative networks, leadership, technological empowerment, and workforce well-being.
This integrated approach is foundational for public institutions aiming not only to navigate the complexities of contemporary crises but also to emerge from these challenges more fortified, innovative, and aligned with their core mission and values, thereby ensuring the sustained delivery of public services in an evolving global context.
According to Ms Obakeng Pitsoane from the DPSA, the theme titled: “A focus on Africa’s state fragility and resilience to exogenous shocks and disasters – sustainability, growth, and development imperatives”, emerges as both timely and crucial within the sphere of governance and public administration.
“It underscores an urgent need to transcend conventional, compartmentalized crisis management strategies in favour of considering the countries’ imperatives of sustainability, growth, and development.
“This theme thus advocates for the infusion of innovative governance strategies that capitalize on the collective efficacy of communities, and which emphasize the importance of fostering a governance ecosystem that leads into a sustainable growth and development trajectory of a countries,” she said.
By locating the upcoming seminar around such a critical theme, Ms Pitsoane said the aim is to make a substantive contribution to strengthening the capability of state resilience and preparedness of countries in various dimensions.
Seminar Sub-themes
The first sub-theme seeks to focus on and explore what policies, legislative and institutional frameworks are implemented or domesticated in different countries to enhance state capacity to respond to shocks, infectious diseases.
The second sub-theme includes exploring the role of social capital in governance as one of the ways of enhancing governance for a crisis response.
The third sub-theme explores strategies and plans that countries have put in place to mobilise and increase investment that address financial, infrastructure and human resources aspects for Disaster Risk Reduction; with a view to ensuring sustainability, growth, and development.
The impact of floods on the infrastructure, among others, manifest itself in damaged buildings, bridges, internal displacement of communities which requires a response from the state.
The last sub-theme includes further enhancing the ongoing dialogue within the space of public administration and governance, bridging the gap between theoretical constructs and their practical implications.
The objectives of the seminar
The main objective of the 8th Edition Research Seminar is to continue the dialogue established at the previous seminars of bringing together African practitioners and academics with the focus to encourage them to undertake research on selected topical, cross cutting inter-disciplinary issues, dialogue and inform policy propositions in building state capacity and capability for the actualisation of the goals of Agendas 2030 and 2063.
The 8th edition seminar seeks to also “serve as a platform for sharing best practices at national, regional and continental level” in line with the theme.
Expected outcomes
The expected outcomes are tailored to provide practical frameworks, encourage strategic partnerships, and drive initiatives aimed at fostering a more enhanced preparedness and strategic insight.
