The University of South Africa, also known as Unisa, is the largest open distance learning institution in Africa and the longest standing dedicated distance education university in the world. We enrol nearly one-third of all South African students.
Founded in 1873 as the University of the Cape of Good Hope, the institution became the first public university in the world to teach exclusively by means of distance education in 1946. Throughout the years, Unisa was perhaps the only university in South Africa to have provided all people with access to education, irrespective of race, colour or creed. This vibrant past is mirrored in our rich history, more particularly our massive and impressive database of alumni, some of whom are to be found in the most senior levels of society across the world.
Given our rootedness in South Africa and the African continent, Unisa today can truly claim to be the African university in the service of humanity.
We have embraced the fact that we need to adapt quickly to the fast-paced higher education environment of the 21st century and this is reflected in our management style and leadership practice. In addition, one of our main aims is to harness the new and emerging potential in information and communication technology to catapult the university into a truly digital future.
We offer an unparalleled range of study choices, ranging from short courses and certificate programmes to three-and four-year degrees and diplomas, to over 400 000 current students. As one of the leading research institutions on the continent, our research efforts have won us numerous awards, recognitions and honours.
Through our efforts we contribute to the knowledge and information society, advance development, nurture a critical citizenry and ensure global sustainability.
The process of decolonising research methodology is an ethical, ontological and political exercise rather than simply one of approach and ways of producing knowledge.
Without urgent, radical electoral reforms, next year’s poll will only serve to legitimise Robert Mugabe’s authoritarian rule.
GCIS
Zimbabwe’s ZANU PF sees itself as having brought democracy to the country and will not leave power. Unless civil society succeeds in pressing for change, the 2018 elections will bring none.
South Africa’s Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa says his emails were hacked.
GCIS
Accusations against South African Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa appear to be an example of the tried-and-tested trick to discredit him and his political campaign to become the next president.
President Jacob Zuma at the opening of the ANC’s 5th national policy conference in Johannesburg.
EPA/Stringer
Policy conferences of South Africa’s governing ANC have been about economic policy matters. But more recently organisational renewal has also dominated, as the party loses support.
The face and character of protests in South Africa seems to be changing.
Reuters/Marius Bosch
By admitting South Sudan and Morocco to the African Union, the continental organisation has proven yet again that its commitment to upholding its own democratic ideals is lacking.
Thabo Mbeki during his inauguration as Chancellor at UNISA.
Deaan Vivier/Netwerk24
There’s no doubt South African universities need to undergo a real shift. But are the country’s current intellectual and academic forces up to the task?
Qedani Mahlangu resigned as the local government minister for health in Gauteng following the deaths of 94 mentally ill patients.
South African Tourism
Mahlangu’s resignation over the deaths of mental patients sets her apart from her colleagues in government. But, it does not portend a new trend in political accountability for the governing ANC.
An aerial view of workers at a factory in one of Kenya’s export processing zones near the capital Nairobi.
Reuters/Thomas Mukoya
Africa needs to learn from the experiences of others who have negotiated free trade pacts. In particular it needs to ensure its process is inclusive and does not pander to a few special interests.
Nelson Mandela (right), with former Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, saw human rights as central to South Africa’s foreign affairs.
Reuters
South Africa’s decision to leave the ICC suggests that its foreign policy is caught in a dilemma between lofty ideas, an unsettled identity crisis, and shifting priorities in a complex world.
The ANC got rid of one president , Thabo Mbeki (right) in 2008. The groundswell against incumbent Jacob Zuma is growing.
Mike Hutchings/Reuters
The fallout at the meeting of South Africa’s governing ANC clearly exposed how the party’s factionalism has spilled over into government. This is likely to paralyse governance even further.
The criminal case against South African finance minister Pravin Gordhan, right, is an example of President Jacob Zuma’s abuse of state institutions.
GCIS
The use of the prosecuting authority and the police in ANC succession struggles has a long history. What’s different in the Zuma era is the symbiosis between elite police and the prosecution service.
One of the major benefits for BRICS is economic cooperation.
Shutterstock
South Africa’s watershed local elections have resulted in upsets for the ANC in key metropoles. But will the new, minority coalition regimes live up to their mandate of providing basic services?
Pokot girls in Kenya wait for an ceremony that marks their passage into womanhood – and means they’re ready for marriage.
Reuters/Siegfried Modola
Two musicals set in working class mining communities – one in the UK and the other in South Africa – have diametrically opposed messages: one of hope; the other, despair.
Supporters of South Africa’s governing ANC during campaigning for upcoming local election.
Reuters/Siphiwe Sibeko
The Tripartite Alliance in South Africa has previously provided the governing African National Congress with diverse support, securing it victory at the polls. It is now riven with dissension.
Tshwane mayor Kgosientso Ramokgopa unsuccessfully pleads for calm with angry ANC supporters.
EPA/Ihsaan Haffejee
Some of the factors behind the riots by ANC supporters in Tshwane are not new. They include gripes within the governing party about its process for choosing mayors and divisions over Jacob Zuma.
Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn greets US President Barack Obama on his arrival in Ethiopia.
Reuters/Tiksa Negeri
Between 1995 and 2013 the US provided about US$98 billion in aid to sub-Saharan Africa. But the country’s economic and political reach is slowly declining.
A woman cheers during Freedom Day celebrations in South Africa.
Reuters/Mujahid Safodien
South Africa’s transition to democracy was based on the values of inclusive politics, reconciliation, human rights and constitutionalism. Twenty-two years on, how has the country fared?