IFAA Monthly Update: March 2015

Please read below for news, updates on our activities and upcoming events. 

Partnerships 

Partnership with the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) UNECA Logo

IFAA has confirmed a partnership agreement with the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa to conduct policy research on the mineral value chain in South Africa. Our findings will be produced in a form that is in line with the Africa Mining Vision of the African Union and with the African Development Bank.

Upcoming Events 

The National Research Foundation: Experts Meeting on the MVC

IFAA will be co-hosting an experts meeting on the Mineral Value Chain with the National Research Foundation in April 2015. Invitations have gone to government, private sector, and academics. The goal of the meeting is to identify the obstacles to local beneficiation and to determine the measures required to advance domestic value addition.

Anglo-American: Fuel-Cell Rural Electrification 

Anglo-American have asked IFAA to co-host a workshop in March 2015 on Fuel-Cell Rural Electrification. Presentations will be given by Anglo-American Platinum and the invitees will include major mining houses, government departments (Minerals, Trade and Industry, Energy, Rural Development) and academia. We anticipate that this workshop will create the environment for a major advance in off-grid electricity provision.

China-Africa Colloquium 

The University of Cape Town has invited IFAA to co-host a major meeting of senior policymakers and confucius_logoacademics to discuss China-Africa relations. The keynote speaker will be Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, the Chairperson of the African Union. Minister of Trade and Industry, Rob Davies, will also participate in the conference along with senior academics and officials from China.

IFAA Sunday Forum 

The IFAA Sunday Forum is a bi-monthly discussion group led by postgraduate students and members of the public. The forum aims to facilitate the democratization of socially relevant ideas and discourses. Attendance and participation is open to all. Our calendar for the following month includes the following titles: Marxism and Consciousness in South Africa, The Development of Third World Societies: Why Social Contract Matters and Pan African Engineering Dream. The presenters are Mike Smith, Tafadzwa Tivaringe and Brian Kamanzi.

For more information about the forum see the facebook page here.

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