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Graphic: John McCann

From surveillance to stewardship: Why universities must re-think their response to AI

Universities remain among the few institutions in society dedicated to the careful creation and stewardship of knowledge. If they respond to AI primarily through fear and…

Graduation day  arrives, but the job offers don’t. Photo: Chris Furlong/Getty Images

South Africa’s unemployed graduates stuck in limbo

Despair overtakes bright young minds whose dreams of applying their knowledge are shattered

Professor Bonang Mohale, chancellor of the University of the Free State. (Photo by Sebnem Coskun/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)

Bonang Mohale: South Africa has all the markings of a failed state

The former Business Leadership SA chief executive and current chancellor of the University of the Free State highlighted unemployment as the biggest problem to address

Graphic: John McCann

Cooper, the grocery assistant with AI, gives concierge service

The coronavirus pandemic has demonstrated that there is not a part of our lives that will not be affected by the technologies of the fourth industrial revolution.

Graduates are being left in the lurch by a higher education department that is simply unable to deliver the crucial certificates proving their qualifications – in some cases dating back to 1992

We must equip graduates to excel in tasks that are beyond the scope of AI

With artificial intelligence taking over background tasks in the financial services sector, graduates need to be equipped with modern skills and mindsets to complement the…

(John McCann/M&G)

Preparing graduates for the workplace

Imbuing students with entrepreneurial thinking can also provide value to the larger economy

Although there are several state-sponsored initiatives aimed at creating work opportunities, these initiatives tend to miss many young people who are isolated as a result of vulnerabilities and social exclusion.

Are young South Africans set up for failure?

With 7.9-million young South Africans out of work or with very little education or training opportunities, who looks out for their aspirations?

(John McCann/M&G)

Mandela said I could, so I got my doctorate

My mother was a domestic worker and my father a miner, and I went to school in the townships