Events 2012

2012 events

 
 

December 2012: DSM presentation at BUSA

In a presentation to Business Unity South Africa (BUSA) in Johannesburg, Proff Wilma Viviers and Riaan Rossouw told representatives from various business sectors about TRADE's Decision Support Model (DSM) and how it can be used to identify export opportunities. For more information regarding this presentation, download it from here.
UNCTAD-TRADE video conference

30 November 2012: Prof Ludo Cuyvers visits TRADE

 Prof Ludo Cuyvers, emeritus professor at the University of Antwerp, visited the TRADE research niche area. Prof Cuyvers is the original architect of the DSM (Decision Support Model) which can be used to identify export opportunities. During his visit there were wide-ranging discussions on the fine-tuning of the DSM, as well as possible extensions to the model and associated research plans.  
 

24-26 October 2012: International Trade and Investment conference

The 2nd International Conference on International Trade and Investment - with the theme 'Financial Crisis and Trade and Investment in Developing Countries’ - was organised by the University of Mauritius and the WTO Chairs Programme and was held from 24-26 October at the Hotel le Meridien in Mauritius.

The conference was a wonderful networking opportunity as all the participants focused their research and/or teaching on international trade and investment. Some delegates had exceptional expertise in these fields and many discussions on possible cooperation took place during the tea and lunch breaks, but also on the beautiful beach during the cocktail functions!

The keynote address was given by Prof Olivier Morrissey of the University of Nottingham, the title of which was: ‘Well Past Doha: Trade and Investment Issues for Africa in the current economic environment’. The conference also included a roundtable discussion on ‘The Financial Crisis, International Investment and Trade’ and the panel included Prof Morrissey; Prof H Kramer of the University of Karlruhe in Germany; Dr A Keck of the World Trade Organization (WTO); Mr R Munoz-Moreno of the World Bank; Prof R Grynberg, senior research fellow at the Botswana Institute for Development and Policy Analysis (BIDPA); and Hon Sayyad Abd-Al-Cader Sayen-Hossen, Minister of Industry, Commerce and Consumer Protection of Mauritius.

A plenary session included the topics: ‘They prefer it rough: The future of diamond beneficiation in Botswana’, led by Prof Roman Grynberg, and ‘The Crisis of the European Monetary Union: Origins, Consequences, Remedies - A Critical Assessment of Common Explanations and Adopted Measures’ led by Prof Hagen Kramer.

Four participants from the TRADE research niche area and colleagues from the School of Economics, Prof Wilma Viviers, and Drs Ermie Steenkamp, Sonja Grater and David Spies, attended the conference and delivered the following papers:

'Linking export opportunities of products and services: The case of South Africa'
'
Constructing a market accessibility index for South African products in Africa'
'Identifying alternative export markets by means of a market accessibility index: The case of Namibian red meat exports'

 

 

 

 

 

21 August 2012: UNCTAD affiliation

TRADE is now affiliated with the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development's (UNCTAD) Virtual Institute. This provides the TRADE team with access to specialised training on trade analysis methods, opportunities for studies and research visits abroad, as well as the possibility of joint research projects and publications. More information can be found here.

22 June 2012: Export Promotion book launch

'Export Promotion: A Decision Support Model Approach’ was officially launched on 22 June at a special function at the NWU. It is the culmination of research done over a number of years by Prof Ludo Cuyvers and Prof Wilma Viviers and the TRADE team. A brief review of the book can be found here, and it can be purchased here.

TRADE article in NWU magazine 'eish!'

A report regarding the work of TRADE in identifying export opportunities for South Africa was featured in the NWU's internal magazine 'eish!'. The article can be found here (note: the article is in Afrikaans only).