Prof Prof Sanjay Bhayani

Prof. Sanjay Bhayani, M.Com., M.Phil., Ph.D. FDPM (IIMA), Dean, Professor, and Head at the Department of Business Management (MBA Programme) Saurashtra University, Rajkot, India, is a Gold Medallist in the B.Com. and M.Com. Exams. He has worked as the officiating vice chancellor of Saurashtra University, Rajkot. He has worked as a member of the vice chancellor search committee. He has completed four major research projects funded by the UGC, AICTE, and ICSSR. He has attended the Ministry of Education, Government of India-sponsored Leadership for Academician Programme (LEAP) at Tata Institute of Social Science (TISS), Mumbai, and the University of Pennsylvania (UPEN), Philadelphia, USA, during the years 2020 and 2021. He has been in academics for more than twenty-nine years. He has rendered his services as an expert in various committees of U.G.C. and AICTE and visited many universities and institutes as a NAAC peer team member. He has published 170 empirical research publications in reputed national and international journals and presented papers at national and international conferences. He has published nine books and authored a few cases. He has successfully guided twenty-nine scholars, leading to the award of a Ph.D. He has received six national awards for excellence in his research work. He is the Chief Editor of the UGC CARE and ABDC-listed “Journal of Commerce and Accounting Research,” published by India Publishing Group, Delhi, and also the editor and reviewer of reputed international publications from India and abroad. He is the General Secretary of the Indian Accounting Association and the founder chairman of the Indian Society for Training and Development (ISTD), Rajkot Chapter. He has worked as an independent director of Rajkot Commodity Exchange, Rajkot, appointed by the Forward Market Commission, Government of India, Mumbai. He has represented the university at various research conferences in the USA, UK, UAE, Singapore, and Malaysia and acted as chairman of technical sessions at the conferences. His current teaching and research interests include strategy, corporate governance and corporate disclosure, capital markets, behavioral finance, and control.

  Dr Svetlana Tatuskar

Dr. Svetlana Tatuskar is presently the Director of Kohinoor Business School, Mumbai, India. She comes with 23 years of experience in research, teaching, mentoring and training. She completed her Ph.D in Banking and her Masters in Commerce and is also an Accounting Technician from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India. Her Ph.D fetched her the Reserve Bank of India (The Central Bank of India) Scholarship for a project on Banking consolidation as well as her PhD received the best PhD award by Prestige Institute of Management, Indore. Dr. Svetlana  has published extensively in the areas of banking , mergers and acquisitions, restructuring and wealth management. She has more than 95 Research papers to her credit presented and published at both National and International Journals.

Dr. Svetlana is empaneled as a SMART Trainer with Securities Exchange Board of India, the Capital Market regulator in India and has conducted several Financial Literacy Programs. She is also the Vice-President, Maharashtra State for WICCI- Women Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Financial Literacy Council. She has been appointed as an external member with many companies on POSH matters and has given POSH consultancy for the past seven years. She is also a trainer with Institute of Companies Secretaries of India for assignments related to POSH matters both on compliance as well as trainings and certifications for both accomplished professionals as well as students. She is on three Panels of Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) - Industry Academia, Women Empowerment and Skill Development.

Dr. Svetlana is a consultant and academic and financial expert on feasibility analysis at EdCil , which is a Miniratna company under GoI, Ministry of Education. Her consulting activities involve financial feasibility studies and restructuring strategies for variety of universities and companies in India. Dr. Svetlana is also a dedicated educator and mentor. She has assisted numerous students in the fields of financial literacy, banking, mergers and acquisitions, valuations, many of whom have gone on to successful careers in academia and industry.

Dr. Svetlana is associated as a Trainer with Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), At TISS she is heavily engaged in imparting training to students belonging to humbled homes under the banner of the project of National University Students Skill Development – A Ministry of HRD initiative. She has conducted several training programs for Corporates on POSH, Wealth Management, Financial Statement Analysis and Restructuring. She is on the board of studies of B-schools in India. Her hobbies are reading and photography.

  Prof Concepción Román

Concepción Román holds a PhD in Economics from the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC) and is a graduate in Mathematics from the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid. She is Professor at the Applied Economic Analysis Department of the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. She is the director of the Research Unit “Tourism and Transport” at the University Institute Tourism and Economic Sustainable Development (Tides). She has more than 18 years of professional experience in the field of transport economics in the areas of tourism and demand transport modelling, air transport and its regulation. Professsor Román has participated as expert and consultant in some projects of the European Union (EU) and other international top-level institutions. She was the president of the XIV Panamerican Conference held in Las Palmas. She is co-author of 15 books and monographs; guest editor on some special issues of scholarly journals. She has authored or co-authored more than 80 peer-reviewed papers and book chapters since 1993 in the field of tourism and transport economics. In the last 20 years, she has given over 100 presentations at international conferences. She is currently a Visiting Professor around the world and has taught transport and tourism courses in Belgium, Portugal, Ecuador, Bolivia, Spain and Morocco.

  Prof Petrus DF Strydom

Professor Petrus (Peet) Strydom is an extraordinary professor in the TRADE (Trade and Development) Research Entity of the North-West University (Potchefstroom Campus). Professor Strydom holds a DCom from the North-West University and a PhD from the VU University in Amsterdam.  Previously he held professorships at the University of South Africa, the University of the Witwatersrand, and the University of Johannesburg.  Outside academia he worked as a private sector economist for 17 years, mainly in large corporations in Johannesburg. His research focus is on international economics and the digital economy.  He published widely in international peer review books and professional journals on these topics. The Economic Society of South Africa awarded him a medal and honorary membership for his contribution to the Society and economics.

  Prof Terrence Kommal

Prof. Terrence Kommal: Catalyst for Impactful Change

Prof. Terrence Kommal, a visionary leader, has harnessed his extensive expertise to cultivate sustainable leadership environments. He's the driving force behind the Omdutt Group, overseeing a range of impact-driven enterprises across healthcare, technology, academia, and more.

With a remarkable 23-year track record, Prof. Kommal embodies servant leadership, dedicated to fostering meaningful change. Beginning as a medical doctor and an anaesthetist, he's now a trailblazer, leading impactful companies in South Africa and Africa.

Beyond corporate roles, Prof. Kommal is the Chairman of Emoyamed Hospital and the CEO of African Rainbow Healthcare. His influence spans global platforms, being selected as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum in 2021. He contributes insights to Forbes Africa and CNBC Africa, while his educational journey reflects a commitment to ethics and leadership.

Technology underpins his transformative approach, employing decentralized autonomous structures and AI solutions to enhance healthcare delivery. His efforts have empowered marginalized communities, providing access to vital services.

Prof. Kommal's vision centers on the 3 "I" model – Integrity, Innovation, and Impact. This model, rooted in his role as the first Extraordinary Professor of Practice at North-West University, seeks to align business strategies with sustainable impact and the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

In essence, Prof. Terrence Kommal's enduring impact underscores his role as a catalyst for positive change, reshaping industries, fostering sustainable leadership, and amplifying impact on a global scale. Prof. Kommal amongst many other universities is an alumnus of Harvard Medical School.

  Prof Wouter van Hoven

He recently retired as Head of the Center for Wildlife Management at the University of Pretoria and held a Marsh Professorship at the University of Vermont, USA.   He has been a guest lecturer for many courses internationally including Nutritional Ecology/Wildlife Nutrition, Nature Reserve Planning, and Environmental Impacts on natural areas. He has been recently appointed as Professor Extraordinaire at North- West University.

Wouter van Hoven is a recognized leader in the field of wildlife management and nutritional biochemistry.  He has presented papers at over fifty international meetings, appeared in 15 televised documentaries,  provided ten chapters in various textbooks, has over eighty  scientific publications, and has completed over two-hundred community outreach and/or consultancy projects , also as a  team leader.  He is a member or serves on the board of a variety of national and international organizations.

He served for 10 years as vice-president of the International Council for Wildlife Conservation.

He was elected as founder president of the Kissama Foundation in Angola which brought wildlife, including elephant, back to a wildlife- sterile landscape. This was the first time that family groups of elephants were kept together and transported with aircraft.  For his leadership in this program, he was awarded the Joseph R. Daly award of the United Nations Environmental Program and the Wild Foundation (USA) for excellence in wildlife conservation, with special emphasis on Angola and the WWF- Nedbank Green Trust Award for “Individuals in Action” category.

He is the founder and CEO of Ecolife Expedition a company that specialises in hands-on training programs for Veterinary students, Wildlife Management , Eco-tourism and Marine Biology Science and Tourism.1,7

  Prof Tafirenyika Sunde

Professor Tafirenyika Sunde is an academic with extensive experience in economics and research. He is an Extraordinary Associate Professor in Trade and Development at the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences at the Potchefstroom Campus of the North-West University. Dr Tafirenyika Sunde is also an Associate Professor at the Namibia University of Science and Technology, formerly known as the Polytechnic of Namibia. Before joining Namibia's then Polytechnic in 2008, he worked as a Teaching Assistant and Lecturer at the University of Zimbabwe (UZ) and the Midlands State University (MSU), respectively.

Professor T. Sunde received his PhD and MSc in economics from the University of South Africa (UNISA) and the University of Zimbabwe (UZ) in 2016 and 1997, respectively. His research covers topics in trade and development, macroeconomics, energy economics, applied econometrics, and public policy, published in reputable peer-reviewed local and international journals. Prof Sunde was nominated as the best researcher in the Faculty of Management Sciences in 2012 and 2017. He has also participated in government and privately funded projects in Namibia and Zimbabwe

  Dr Saskia de Klerk

Dr. Saskia de Klerk (SFHEA) is the Discipline Lead for the Marketing, International Business, and Tourism disciplines at the University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia. She also holds an adjunct position as Associate Professor at North-West University, South Africa, and as an Adjunct Senior Lecturer at the University of New South Wales (Canberra). She is a topic editor, board member of Management Decision, and reviewer of several international reputed journals. She has successfully supervised 15 Ph.D. students from across the globe. She teaches entrepreneurship, managing across cultures, international business, and innovation. Her research interests include mapping, developing, and advancing entrepreneurial and networking skills and regional entrepreneurial ecosystems as value chains. Her work supports the development of an entrepreneurial mindset and articulates pathways to transition into entrepreneurship and sustainable practices in regional ecosystems through circular economy and bricolage strategies. Saskia is a member of the IORA (Indian Ocean Rim Association) and the ACPIR (Australian Centre for Pacific Island Research). Research projects include:

• Food and agribusiness innovation. Some projects include ACIAR CS2020/191, titled Adopting a Gender-inclusive Participatory Approach to Reducing Horticultural Food Loss in the Pacific (Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research), Sunshine Coast Council, and FAN (Food and Agribusiness Network).
• Sustainable practices, agritourism, circular economy, regional development, and innovation with partners at TREES (Tourism Research in Economics, Environs, and Society) at North-West University in South Africa; the IORA (Indian Ocean Rim Association) and ACPIR (Australian Centre for Pacific Island Research).
• Mapping the role and performance of accelerators in the entrepreneurial and regional ecosystems, focusing on innovation, sustainable practices, and bricolage strategies. Multi-university projects, funded by the Australian Government, Department of Industry, Innovation and Science (DIIS).
• Women networking, capacity building, and leadership development projects, with the Real Rural Women Leadership project (Care Balonne industry partnered and Regional Development funded) and Women entrepreneurship networking research, funded by the National Research Fund (SA) and Women in Finance organisation.

  Prof Bernd Eisenstein

Prof. Dr. Bernd Eisenstein is Director of the German Institute for Tourism Research (DITF) and Professor for Tourism Demand at the West Coast University of Applied Sciences as well as Member of the International Institute of Management and Economic Education at Europa-Universität Flensburg/Germany. He has also been Extraordinary Professor at the TREES of North-West University in Potchefstrom since 2020. He studied geography, business administration and economics and received his doctorate on wine tourism. He was a fellow of a scientific foundation, has edited more than a dozen books and written numerous publications. He is currently a member of the German Society for Tourism Studies (DGT) and a board member of the working group on tourism research of the German Geographical Society. Eisenstein enjoys giving frequent lectures at professional events. His current research focuses on tourism acceptance by the destination population, tourism market segmentation, the behaviour of business travellers, projects on destination image and destination brands, the consequences of tourism and control systems for destination development.

  Dr Luis Camacho

Dr. Luis Camacho is a researcher, educator, and consultant with extensive experience in Business, International Business, Marketing, and Emerging Markets. He is an Extraordinary Associate Professor at the School of Management Science, North-West University (Mahikeng Campus), and an Assistant Professor at the Business School at SUNY Empire State University, New York, USA. He is also the Latin American Program Director for dual degree programs at the Center for International Education. 

Dr. Camacho's research is based on consumer behavior, international management, corporate citizenship, sustainability, and emerging markets. He has a long history of research in a multidisciplinary area of expertise ranging from the effects of ethnocentrism and xenocentrism on consumer purchase intention, productive linkages and global value chains, ethnic markets and ethnic market orientations, corporate citizenship in international business, and technostress. In his broad area of expertise, he has acted as a consultant to several institutions such as the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Agencia Española de Cooperacion, Proinvest (European Union), Consorzio Nazionale Italiano dell'articolo da regalo, del mobile e del complemento d'arredo, among others.

Dr. Camacho is the conference chair for the Academy of Latin American Business and Sustainability Studies (ALBUS). He is passionate about multiculturalism and academic inclusion in developing countries and emerging markets; Dr. Camacho has unified social, cultural, and economic facts from diverse countries and business realities, creating a global understanding of the business world, social structures, and education.

  Dr Aaron Tkaczynski

Dr Aaron Tkaczynski has been an extra-ordinary Associate Professor position in the Tourism Research in Economics, Environs and Society (TREES) department at North-West University since 2021. Aaron is an expert in the field of tourism and events marketing with his expertise stemming from market segmentation modelling. He has published over 50 journal articles in journals such as Journal of Travel Research, Tourism Management, Event Management and Journal of Destination Marketing and Management. Since 2022, Dr Tkaczynski is currently part of an Australian research team that is  co-designing and implementing a community engagement and threat mitigation initiatives in partnership with local governments to support Koala Conservation in South East Queensland. This project has resulted in several publications. He is also a Christian and has actively researched and volunteered for many Christian orientated events such as festivals and leadership conferences. He has taught a variety of tourism and events subjects at the University of Queensland for over 14 years at both the undergraduate and postgraduate level.

  Dr Habil Szabolcs Nagy

Szabolcs Nagy is a habilitated professor and an experienced researcher in marketing, social sciences, and sustainability with more than twenty years of varied business and research experience. He currently works as the Vice Dean for International Relations at the Faculty of Economics, University of Miskolc. In this function, he worked on the implementation of the mentor system for international students. He was also mentoring over twenty students for students’ scientific conferences. He is the Head of the Department of Marketing Communication and Strategy at the Institute of Marketing and Tourism. He is an experienced networker with a strong industrial background. He is an economist (M.Sc. in Business Economics) and holds a PhD in management and organisational sciences (University of Miskolc). His research interests lie in the area of business, marketing, digital transformation, innovation and sustainability. He led or participated in several international and national academic and business research projects such as Proskill dealing with the development of a skill ecosystem in the V4 countries or Fonix, which aims to renew the University of Miskolc, to increase its competitiveness, to improve the quality, efficiency and accessibility of its education and services, to reduce social and territorial disadvantages in the region based on the intellectual potential of the institution, to increase the proportion of graduates, to improve the quality of life and labour market opportunities of people with disabilities and disadvantaged people, to strengthen the ability to attract foreign students.

He is a member of the editorial board of five international journals indexed in Scopus and WoS. He is the Chair of the Marketing Working Committee in the Miskolc Regional Committee of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. Also, he is a member of the Marketing Subcommittee of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, the Hungarian Economic Association (HEA), the Association for Marketing Education and Research, and the Romanian Agency for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ARACIS).

  Prof Robert Magda

Focus area: natural resource utilisation, sustainability

Prof. Robert Magda (PhD) is the professor at John von Neumann University, Kecskemét, Hungary. He also works at Debrecen University as an invited professor and at the North-West University as an extraordinary professor.

Prof. Robert Magda has over 27 years of teaching, research, and leading experience in higher education. He is a lecturer in many courses of both undergraduate graduate and PhD courses in economics, natural resource utilization and sustainability. During his research activities, he has gained insight into several fields of research, which include but are not limited to the following: the examination of land as a natural and economic resource; different modes of land use; the economic role of natural resources; the economic potentials of rural areas; limited resources and sustainability, food safety and food security.

Prof. Magda has published widely, and his publications include refereed journals’ papers, books, book chapters, as well as conference proceedings or books reviews. He is a guest editor, reviewer and scientifically boards member for many international journals and conferences.

  Prof Gabriel Louw

GABRIEL LOUW, a psychologist, historian, academic, educator, researcher and writer, is a professor-emeritus of the Potchefstroom University of Christian Higher Education (PUCHE) and the North-West University (NWU), South Africa, where he lectured to under- and postgraduates and did comprehensive research and the supervising of dissertations/theses at the Department of Psychology (1980-1995) of PUCHE and at the Faculty of Education (2009-2013) of the Mahikeng-campus, NWU. After his retirement at the NWU, he was appointed by the NWU in its Focus Area Social Transformation (FAST) at the Faculty of Humanities, Potchefstroom-campus: in 2016 as a research fellow, in 2019 as an extraordinary researcher and since 2020 as an extraordinary professor. Since the 1st August 2022 he is appointed as an extraordinary professor in the entity Global Innovative Forefront Talent: Leadership Development (GIFT) at the faculty of Economics and Management Sciences, Mahikeng-campus of NWU.

He was also the head of two South African private accredited tertiary institutions and worked as senior consultant in the South African private tertiary sector (1996-2008). He designed, developed and registered multitude graduate and postgraduate programs, including three MBAs, for private tertiary institutions with the South African Higher Education Authorities (SAHEA).

He started his career in the South African Civil Service as a teacher (1968-1969), an archivist (1970-1972) and a psychologist (1973-1979).

Prof. Louw’s main research interests are academic/educational development and management, leadership, healthcare and political history, as well as the individual’s constitutional and political rights. His focus is on project-research to activate series of accredited articles, the publishing of books and the delivery of article-format-theses. He is well-experienced in face to face and distance/online teaching/supervising.

  Prof Sebastian Kot

Prof Sebastian Kot (PhD) has been the associated professor at Czestochowa University of Technology at the Management Faculty. He also works at School of Management Sciences – Workwell research focus area at the Vaal Triangle Campus of the North-West University as an extraordinary professor.

Prof Sebastian Kot has over 25 years of teaching, research and managerial experience in higher education. He is a lecturer in many undergraduate and graduate courses in the areas of supply chain management, logistics and transport. His research interests are supply chain management, sustainability and green concepts in SCM and logistics.

Prof. Kot has published widely, and his publications include refereed journals’ papers, books, book chapters, as well as conference proceedings. He is the Editor in Chief of Polish Journal of Management Studies (Scopus and ESCI indexed). He was a keynote speaker and invited presenter in international conferences as well as he was a supervisor and reviewer of numerous PhD thesis and professorship appointments all over the world.

  Dr Zafarullah Sahito

  Dr Gustavo Hermínio Salati Marcondes de Moraes

Professor Gustavo Moraes is a distinguished academic with extensive experience in business administration and entrepreneurship. He is an Extraordinary Associate Professor at the School of Management Science, North-West University (Vanderbijlpark Campus), and an Associate Professor at the School of Applied Sciences, State University of Campinas (UNICAMP), Brazil.

Professor Moraes received his Ph.D. and MSc in Business Administration from the Sao Paulo School of Business Administration, Getulio Vargas Foundation (FGV/EAESP), in 2013 and 2010, respectively. His research emphasizes the topics of the entrepreneurial ecosystem, sustainable entrepreneurship, information technology, and consumer behavior, which have been widely published in reputable international journals. His research has also been recognized and awarded by research institutions.

Dr. Moraes is a scientific advisor and referee for the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq, Brazil) and Sao Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP, Brazil). His professional experience also includes working as an entrepreneur in technology and food and as a consultant for large national and international companies in innovation and technology.

  Dr Jonathan Calof

Dr. Jonathan Calof is a renowned expert in intelligence and foresight, specializing in their application to innovation. He serves as the UNESCO co-chair on anticipatory systems for innovation and venture creation. As a full professor at the Telfer School of Management, University of Ottawa, he combines research and consulting to assist organizations in developing anticipatory systems that generate key insights for future innovations.

With over 1000 speaking engagements worldwide, Dr. Calof has shared his expertise on topics such as market insight, competitive intelligence, foresight, and analytics. He has worked with numerous companies and government agencies globally to enhance their capabilities in these areas. His contributions to fact-based decision making have earned him several prestigious awards, including Frost and Sullivan's lifetime achievement award in competitive intelligence.

Dr. Calof holds honorary positions at various institutions, including Yunnan Normal University in China, the Institute for Statistical Studies and Economics and Knowledge in Moscow, Russia, and North-West University in South Africa. He also serves as an adjunct professor at the University of New Brunswick. Additionally, he is involved in multiple foresight and intelligence publications as a board member.

As a prolific author, Dr. Calof has published over 200 works, including books on competitive intelligence and a forthcoming publication on the role of big data and analytics in international decision-making. He is actively engaged in consulting and sits on the advisory boards of several companies. Furthermore, he co-chairs the Economy for Tomorrow program at the Pearson Center for Progressive Policy, focusing on addressing Canada's future challenges through foresight and policy discussions.

  Dr Rajesh Sannegadu

Dr Rajesh Sannegadu is an Extraordinary Special Researcher at the School of Management Sciences at the North-West University (Potchefstroom Campus). He is a Senior Lecturer in International Business at the University of Mauritius and has over 10 years of teaching and research experience in higher education. He has been lecturing International Business, Supply Chain Management and International Business Strategy at undergraduate and post graduate levels. He has a broad work experience in the public, construction and the banking sectors in Mauritius. He has contributed to several funded research projects on ICT and education, SMEs, smart cities and e-payment in Mauritius. His research interest and publications are in SMEs’ internationalisation, consumer behaviour and e-commerce. He has also been a reviewer for a few journals and Masters and PhD theses.

  Dr Clive Coetzee

Dr. Clive Coetzee is an extraordinary research scientist at the TRADE Research Unit and the School of Economic Sciences of the North-West University in South Africa since 2017. In 2021, he was appointed as a senior lecturer at the Department of Economics of the Faculty of Military Science, University of Stellenbosch at the Military Academy in Saldanha.  In 2022, he was appointed as the Chairperson of the School For Defence Organisation and Resource Management of the Faculty of Military Science. He is an utterly competent researcher, with particular expertise in advanced econometrics, geographic information systems and remote sensing, publishing over 15 peer review articles since 2017.

He obtained the degrees B.Mil. in Management Sciences, B.Mil. Honours in Economics and a master’s degree in Economics from the Faculty of Military Science, University of Stellenbosch, between 1994 and 2000. He completed two advanced management courses at the University of South Africa and a PhD degree in Economics from the University of KwaZulu-Natal. Between 1990 and 2000, he served in the South African Air Force, among others as a training instructor, operations officer and commanding officer of various squadrons. In 1999, he was appointed lecturer in Economics at the Faculty of Military Science, University of Stellenbosch. He also lectured at the School of Economics of the University of Cape Town. In 2003, he joined the School of Economics and Finance of the University of KwaZulu-Natal. In 2008, he was appointed at the Provincial Treasury in KwaZulu-Natal as the Chief Director of Infrastructure Management and Economic Services until 2020. He has also had a consultancy business called FlyingFish since 2000, specialising in economic and financial analysis, information and presentations, including public policy support.

  Mr David Dyason

David Dyason is an extraordinary research scientist in the TRADE Research Focus Area at the North-West University and Senior Lecturer in Property and Valuation at Lincoln University, New Zealand. I am an economist with an interest in property, applied economics, and impact assessment. I have more than 10 years professional experience as a consultant in property market analysis and have also worked in the public sector as an economist and as an academic. My research interest and publications are in property, economics, geography, and planning and I continue to be involved as an advisor to the private and public sectors in economic and land-use planning. Through my research, I aim to reveal the causal relationship between property and economics and how it influences economic development in the urban and rural landscape.

  Prof Yusuf Opeyemi Akinwale

Prof. Yusuf Opeyemi Akinwale is an extraordinary research professor at North-West University, Vanderbijlpark Campus, South Africa, and he has been an associate professor at Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University (Formerly University of Dammam), Saudi Arabia. He was a Postdoctoral Fellow at North-West University previously after his MSc (University of Aberdeen, UK) and PhD at African Institute for Science Policy and Innovation (Obafemi Awolowo University, Nigeria).

Prof. Akinwale has participated in the teaching of various courses such as macroeconomics, microeconomics, business economics, managerial economics, research methodology, health economics and principles of finance among others at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels. He has impacted life long knowledge and skills in his students for more than a decade.

He has published many peer-reviewed articles in highly ranked journals, books, chapters in a book, and conference proceedings in various international conferences. His areas of interest include trade openness, economics of innovation and entrepreneurship, energy and developmental studies. He has also served as reviewers for many journals and member of scientific boards in conferences

  Prof Ludo Cuyvers

Professor Ludo Cuyvers is Emeritus Professor and Director of the Centre for ASEAN Studies at the University of Antwerp, Belgium. He is also extra-ordinary professor at the North-West University, South Africa, and associate research fellow of the United Nations University Institute on Comparative Regional Integration Studies (UNU-CRIS), Bruges, Belgium.

Prof. Cuyvers received his Ph.D. from the Faculty of Applied Economics of the University of Antwerp. He published in international journals, among which European Economic Review, Economica, Economic Journal, Journal of Post-Keynesian Economics, Long Range Planning, Journal of Asian Economics, International Marketing Review, and many others. He also edited three books with international publishers.  His most recent books are The Economic Ideas of Marx’s Capital - Steps Towards Post-Keynesian Economics (Routledge, 2017) and Neo-Marxism and Post-Keynesian Economics – From Kalecki to Sraffa and Joan Robinson (Routledge, 2022).

Between 1989 and 2009 Prof. Cuyvers was a member of the Board of Directors of Office National du Ducroire (Brussels), the Belgian federal credit insurance company, and between 1991 and 2015 also of that of Flanders Investment & Trade, the export and investment promotion organisation of the Flemish region of Belgium.

Prof. Cuyvers has a long and wide-ranging international experience. Between 1987 and 1992 he was President of a Belgian export training centre. Between 1991 and 2010 he was directing interuniversity cooperation projects in various Southeast Asian countries, and since 2001 he is regularly visiting professor at the NIDA Business School, Bangkok, Thailand. From 1999 until 2015, Prof. Cuyvers was Chairman of the European Institute for Asian Studies, a Brussels based think tank. Besides being consultant on export promotion for the Belgian and the Flemish Government, he also acted as consultant for the European Commission, the European Parliament, the International Labour Office and the Department of Trade and Industry (dti), South Africa.

  Prof Beata Ślusarczyk

Prof Beata Ślusarczyk (PhD) has been the associated professor at Czestochowa University of Technology at the Management Faculty since 2011. She is the Head of the Logistics Department.  Prof. Ślusarczyk also works at TRADE research focus area at the Potchefstroom Campus of the North-West University as an extraordinary professor.

Prof Beata Ślusarczyk has over 25 years of teaching, research and managerial experience in higher education. She is a lecturer in many courses of undergraduate and graduate courses in the areas of logistics costs, globalization and Industry 4.0. She is the promoter of many master's and doctoral theses. Raises her teaching qualifications through academic exchange under the Erasmus plus program.

Her research interests are in the areas of mechanism of globalization, Industry 4.0, industrial policy, costs aspects of logistic performance, women and family entrepreneurship.

Prof. Ślusarczyk has published widely, and her publications include books, book chapters, refereed journals’ papers as well as conference proceedings or books reviews. She is a reviewer and scientifically boards member for many international journal and conferences. In 2021 and 2022, she was among the top 2% of the most cited scientists according to the ranking prepared by Stanford University. Prof. Ślusarczyk is also a member of research teams in projects and grants financed by national and international institutions.

  Prof Nikita Lyutov

Prof Nikita Lyutov is an associate-professor at the M. Narikbayev KAZGUU University (Kazakhstan) since September 2022. From October 2013 – 2022 he was professor and head of Department of Labour and Social Security Law at Kutafin Moscow State Law University, MSAL. He holds in PhD from the Moscow State Law Academy. Since 2019 he is also an extra ordinary Professor at the School of Industrial Psychology and Human Resource Management on the Potchefstroom campus of the North-West University. The main academic activity of prof. Lyutov includes  international labour law, the compliance of Russian labour law norms with international labour standards, regional interaction within the labour law field (European Union, Eurasian Economic Union, BRICS), the interaction of globalization and TNC’s activity with the international labour standards, transformation of employment relations and the regulation of the new forms of employment.  Since 2001 prof. Lyutov has authored more than 220 articles, monographs, and conference presentations.  He also has the highest reading and citation indexes among Russian-language scholars in labour law at ResearchGate and 4620 citations on Google Scholar with an H index of 30.

  Dr Marie-Luce Kuhn

Dr Marie-Luce Kuhn is a Director and Competitive Intelligence Analyst with IBIS Business and Information Services (www.ibis.co.za) founded in 1997, and has a distinguished career in competitive intelligence, international trade (exports) and knowledge management.

Dr. Kuhn is a renowned expert in the field of competitive intelligence and has helped businesses and organizations across South Africa stay ahead by optimising competitiveness. Her background in intelligence has given her a unique perspective on the business and competitive and trade landscape. Her deep understanding of the science behind competitive intelligence, regardless the industry, allows her to provide valuable insights to her clients. These clients include pharmaceutical companies, venture capitalists, and academic institutions. Her expertise in scientific research and analysis has enabled her to provide critical information on industry trends, potential competitors, and new technologies. Throughout her career, Dr. Kuhn has been recognized for her contributions to the field of competitive intelligence. She is known for her ability to identify emerging trends and opportunities and provide actionable insights to her clients.

Dr. Kühn  has participated in several international research projects on subjects ranging from competitive intelligence to export promotion and industry analyses. Her consulting activities also involve tracking and scanning competitive forces for a variety of companies, commissioned research for various companies and institutions and promoting teaching and research on the competitiveness, competitive intelligence and strategy and trade. In addition, Dr. Kuhn is also a dedicated educator and mentor. She has assisted numerous students in the fields of information management and competitive intelligence, many of whom have gone on to successful careers in academia and industry.

Dr. Kühn  has published extensively on the topic of competitive intelligence including the first article on competitive intelligence in South Africa. She is credited as having established Competitive intelligence as a study field in South Africa and has  published a series of books on Competitive Intelligence. In 2002, she developed the first university training course in strategic and competitive analysis that is presented annually at a leading university and is actively involved in developing competitive intelligence analysis capabilities in companies and training programs for tertiary education institutions in South Africa. She is also a guest lecturer and provides support to post graduate students in the field of competitiveness.

Dr Kühn holds a PhD (International Trade) from the North-West University (Potchefstroom Campus) and received the Absa Bronze Medal for Best Master’s Dissertation in the Humanities in March 2005. Her PhD concerned the information requirements of South African exporters and matching those with currently available sources of such information. She is also an Extraordinary Research Scientist attached to the TRADE research focus area at the North-West University (Potchefstroom Campus) since 2014.

  Dr Emmanuel Orkoh

Dr Emmanuel Orkoh an Extra-ordinary Research Scientist in the TRADE research entity of the North-West University (NWU) where I will complete my PhD in Economics in 2019. I currently work on a short-term basis with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Geneva, Switzerland. I am a member of the African Growth and Development Policy Modeling Consortium (AGRODEP), Berkeley Initiative for Transparency in the Social Sciences (BITSS), United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) Virtual Institute and Pan-African Scientific Research Council (PASRC). I have contributed to the establishment of a university-based data Centre (Centre for Data Archiving, Analysis and Advocacy (C-DAMAA)) at the School of Economics of the University of Cape Coast in Ghana. I have also worked on a number of research projects for international institutions such as the African Economic Research Consortium (AERC), United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the Institute of African Leadership for Sustainable Development (UONGOZI Institute) and the World Trade Organization (WTO). My research focuses on the distributional impact of international trade, health and labour market policies in sub-Saharan Africa and other developing countries. I have recently expanded my scope of research to include the welfare and fiscal implication of digital development.

  Prof Juan Carlos Martín

Juan Carlos Martín is a Full Professor of Applied Economics at the Institute of Tourism and Sustainable Economic Development of the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. He was Vice-Dean of Economics (2002-2009) and Vice-Dean of International Relations (2009-2013) at the Faculty of Economics, Business Administration and Tourism. He is the current Vice-president of the Network of European Transport and Communications Activities Research (NECTAR

He has a long history of research in a multidisciplinary area of expertise ranging from transport and tourism economics, accessibility, service quality, satisfaction, and behavioural analysis in social sciences to aquaculture consumer preferences and eco-labelling. His research is widely cited in academia and frequently used by policy and decision-makers. In his broad area of expertise, he has acted as a consultant to several Public Administrations and some other private institutions. He has led competitive projects and frequently acts as an expert for some National Research Centres. Member of the Committee of Experts of the Directorate General for Regional Policy on the evaluation, implementation and monitoring of cohesion policy interventions.

Director of the PhD programme on Integral Development and Innovation of Tourism Destinations from 01/09/2011 to 31/12/2014. He has published more than 100 articles in peer-reviewed journals, is the European Editor-in-Chief of Transportation Journal and is on the editorial board of 8 academic journals, including some of the leading international journals in tourism and transport economics. He has supervised or co-directed twelve doctoral theses over the last 10 years. According to Web of Science (WoS), he is the author of 110 publications with a total of 2010 citations and 26 h-index. According to Scopus, he is the author of 115 publications with a total of 2389 citations and 27 h-index. WoS and Scopus were updated on 5 December 2022.

  Dr Riaan Rossouw

Professor Riaan Rossouw is an accomplished economist with over 19 years of experience in academia, business, and public policy making. He is affiliated with various institutions, including FTI Consulting in South Africa, AEXI in the Netherlands and Germany, and the North-West University in South Africa where he holds the position of an extraordinary professor in the Trade and Development (TRADE) Research Focus Area.

Prof. Rossouw has a proven track record of economic impact assessments, data analysis, and strategic intelligence. He specializes in computable general equilibrium (CGE) modelling, international trade flows, and databases, and has extensive knowledge of various economic sectors and economic development. He has developed numerous economic, mathematical, and econometric models that contribute significantly to decision-making in public and private institutions. In his research, Prof. Rossouw focuses on inequality's social and economic dimensions, community economic resilience, decision support systems, and international trade and their consequences for human well-being, security, and prosperity. He obtained a Ph.D. in Economics in 2008, focusing on regional applied general equilibrium modelling with a specific focus on South Africa's North West Province.

Prof. Rossouw has completed numerous local and international advisory projects for private companies, multinational corporations, governments, financial institutions, universities, international NGOs, international business schools, mining houses, freight transport companies, and utility providers. He has reviewed and published in various local and international journals, and has significant experience in Southern, Eastern, and Western Africa. He has also taught local and international students and development practitioners, and contributed to international projects in the Netherlands, Ireland, New Zealand, and the UK

  Prof Susan McKenney

Prof Susan McKenney is a researcher, educator, consultant and designer based at the University of Twente, Netherlands. She is especially interested in exploring and supporting the interplay between curriculum development and teacher professional development. This includes the supportive role of technology in curriculum and teacher development, as well as particular attention to these issues in science education, citizenship development, and early childhood literacy. This interest and research experience are why she is an extraordinary professor within the Technology Enhanced Learning and Innovative Training in South Africa in F-EMS. She is committed to exploring how educational research can serve the development of scientific understanding while also developing solutions to real problems in educational practice. Since educational design research lends itself to these dual aims, she works on developing and explicating ways to conduct design research. Much of her work has been carried out in collaboration with organisations in developing countries, but I also enjoy research and consultancy in the Netherlands, the USA and Europe. For current engagements, announcements and comprehensive listings of scientific work, please visit http://www.EducationalDesignResearch.org.