Stellenbosch academics selected as Fellows of new Pan-African Scientific Research Council

Three of our staff members have been selected by the newly formed Pan-African Scientific Research Council (PASRC) as Senior Fellow (Ronelle Burger, left) and Junior Fellows (Dieter von Fintel and Kholekile Malindi, centre and right) respectively. In addition to these three staff members, Dineo Seabe, a postdoc in the Department, has also been selected as a PASRC Junior Fellow. PASRC has been set up in response to the urgent need for collaboration in scholarly research to help African governments and societies respond to the impact of COVID-19. PASRC is already involved in interdisciplinary research projects involving medical/biological researchers as well as social scientists. Research topics include the epidemiology and spread of the virus; the short- and long-term economic impact of the coronavirus on households, firms, and labor markets; and the implications for social cohesion, violence, and governance.

As Fellows, our staff members will be connected to a network of excellent African scholars out of which collaborative projects are expected to flow. There are also opportunities to influence the Council's work by participating in leadership structures, and engagement with policymakers through the Council's structures.