Greatness beyond boundaries in the transformation sphere

The student community and social landscape are changing rapidly. In keeping abreast, we have explored new ways to support student diversity and transformation.

Monitoring transformation

As we open up new frontiers in our transformation journey, we have become better and better at reporting on transformation. Using tools such as the transformation dashboard, we monitor transformation initiatives and milestones across the university, comprehensively and coherently.

Overseeing transformation

Several transformation oversight structures work together to ensure the university stays on track with its transformation targets and goals. These are the Transformation Oversight Committee, the People and Culture and Employment Equity Committee and the Student Life Oversight Committee.

Then there are two transformation advisory bodies. The Institutional Forum is a statutory committee that advises Council on transformation matters, while the Student Diversity and Transformation Committee (SDTC) focuses on transformation in the student environment.

Besides these formal governance structures, we encourage staff and students to seek innovative and practical ways to promote a diverse student population and student leadership cohort. This has included running programmes on multilingualism, gender, sexuality, cultural intelligence and disability.

Adding value

Many students are comfortable in the digital domain, and innovations such as the NWU Language Portrait App has become a valuable tool to enhance the overall student experience.The app encourages engagement on language diversity and capacity within the student community and is a critical enabler of multilingualism. The app is relevant in both the academic and co-curricular environment.

Student Life and People and Culture collaborated on joint campaigns and programmes to implement the NWU values. An example was the NWU Media and Organisational Citizenship Behaviour Recognition Awards, launched in 2023 to acknowledge the contributions of employees and students in embodying the NWU values and acting as change agents. You can read more about these awards in the section on our value chain.

We are proud of the role senior management members have played in various sectoral transformation initiatives. Our executive director for student life and assigned function: transformation, Prof Sibusiso Chalufu, was an active member of the Universities South Africa (USAf) Transformation Strategy Group and the Transformation Managers’ Forum.

Pursuing and enabling equity

In 2023, we concluded the Employment Equity Plan (EEP) for 2021 to 2023 and completed the development and approval of the new three-year plan for 2024-2026.

According to the targets set in the current EEP, black people must account for at least 70% of appointees and people living with disabilities for 2% of the workforce.

The targets were incorporated into the university’s Annual Performance Plan for 2023 and cascaded to individual performance agreements of line managers. Key people management performance areas included managing employment equity and diversity and promoting the preferred NWU culture. A KPA for ethics was also added to the performance agreements of senior managers.

A six-year view of employment equity at the NWU shows that the representativeness of the workforce profile of the NWU has been on an upward path since 2017. The table below shows the progress we have made towards achieving fair representation of people in the designated groups.

In 2023, we developed a comprehensive Transformation Journey Report, which culminated in two workshops facilitated by Professor Crain Soudien, the former deputy vice-chancellor of the University of Cape Town and chair of the Ministerial Oversight Committee on Transformation.

One of the key suggestions arising from the second workshop was to compile a publication on the transformational journey of the NWU. This publication would be released as part of the NWU’s 20th-anniversary celebrations.

Academic transformation

Our curriculum transformation strategies include giving students an in-depth orientation to their fields of study and associated methodologies, as well as a broader understanding of contemporary societal challenges. Work-integrated learning (WIL) and service learning (SL) opportunities foster an ethic of care and social responsibility.

All NWU curricula provide an orientation to various paradigms of thought and explanatory systems, including, where appropriate, indigenous knowledge systems.

During 2023, all faculties revised their language plans to align with the revised NWU Language Policy.

Two major improvements were made across all language plans. First, we included attendance of short learning programmes to promote multilingualism and translanguaging in the performance agreements of staff. Second, we recognised that priority needs to be given to increased resource provision, especially in the African languages.

In 2023, the Language Directorate worked with the Centre for Teaching and Learning to train 372 academic advisors, supplemental instructors and tutors on multilingual approaches to teaching and learning.

The New Century Curriculum project was initiated in 2023 to address recurriculation through a renewed focus on the first and final year of undergraduate studies. The project aims to investigate how initial curricular choices and teaching methods in the first year equip students with essential skills and knowledge for success throughout their undergraduate studies. More details of this project can be found here.

Three awareness weeks were held to support the transformation of the NWU, receiving enthusiastic support.

Gender Awareness Week had the theme "Gender Galaxy” to promote awareness and understanding of gender diversity through online discussions, movie screenings, presentations and a colour run, supported by the vice-chancellor, who completed the run with colleagues and students.

For Facing Race Week, the theme for 2023 was “Expand your vision, appreciate diversity/race in South Africa through different eyes”. Speakers from the University of Venda, the South African Human Rights Commission and the Cultural, Religious and Language Rights Commission shared their insights and stimulated debates.

Transformation of the procurement space

We continued to transform the procurement space by involving local small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) in the procurement of the NWU:

• Preferential procurement is high on the agenda of the relevant sections, based on the amended Preferential Procurement Strategy that Council approved in late 2022.
• On large construction projects, contractors may appoint community liaison officers (CLOs) to liaise with communities about appointing local SMMEs as subcontractors and using local labour on construction projects.
• Tender requirements for local SMME participation are a standard inclusion in all tenders where such participation is possible, especially construction tenders and service contracts.
• We have implemented tender requirements for the subcontracting of a portion of construction projects/service contracts to local contractors.
• A database for SMME registration is up and running. Workshops will be conducted to educate SMMEs and local suppliers on how to register their businesses.
• CLOs have been appointed on each campus to assist with the implementation of the Preferential Procurement Strategy.
• Two companies have been awarded a one-year contract each to carry out the responsibilities of social facilitators.
• A programme that supports SMMEs and local suppliers has been developed, consisting of formal supplier development programmes and workshops.
• A supplier development specialist and an administrator have been appointed.
• We have formed a task team with representatives from Facilities, Finance, Community Engagement, Stakeholder Relations and the Vice-Chancellor’s Office to implement the framework for local participation and community engagement.