The Agricultural Economics Association of South Africa (AEASA) 2024 conference, held in Gqeberha from 9 to 11 September, saw remarkable contributions from Stellenbosch University’s Department of Agricultural Economics. Of the eleven awards presented, the Department walked away with five.
Mkhanyisi Tyelo received the award for the Best Master’s Thesis with his work on “The impact of livestock improvement on the South African economy: A policy analysis using a dynamic computable general equilibrium model”. He was supervised by Dr. Cecilia Punt, senior lecturer in the Department. His research offers significant insights into how livestock policy improvements can shape the future of South Africa’s agricultural economy.
The Department also received accolades for research published in leading professional journals. Marlise Piek (Bureau for Economic Research), Dieter von Fintel (Department of Economics, SU), and Johann Kirsten (Bureau for Economic Research and Professor in the Department) earned 2nd place for their paper “Impact of agricultural minimum wages on worker flows in South Africa,” published in the South African Journal of Economics. In Agrekon, the department's strength was further highlighted, with Kandas Cloete (BFAP and research fellow in the Department), Anke Horing, and Siphe Zantsi (Agricultural Research Council) taking 2nd place for “Modelling the exiting of South African producers from commercial agricultural production – an agent-based model”. The 1st prize for the best paper in Agrekon was awarded to Jana-Mart van der Merwe (former student), Nick Vink (Emeritus Professor at the Department), and Kandas Cloete (BFAP and research fellow in the Department) for their paper on “The competitiveness of South African table grape exports in the European markets: Threats from Peru and Chile”. These research awards not only reflect the Department’s excellence in research but also highlight the Department's collaborative research efforts.
The association also awarded the best research presented at the conference. For the poster “Evaluating AI’s Ability to Distinguish Accurate Climate Information from Distractors”, Luther Chipembere secured 2nd place in the category of Best Poster. It is worth noting that Luther was the sole author of this work, which is a remarkable achievement for a student who only recently graduated with a master's in Agricultural Economics.
Lastly, AEASA also honours the best final-year students from each South African University offering Agricultural Economics degrees. This year, Christien Langenhoven received that award. Awards like these testify to the association’s commitment to nurturing young talent.
The department’s contributions underscore its pivotal role in shaping the future of agricultural economics, demonstrating its continued commitment to impactful research.
From L to R: Melissa van der Merwe (AEASA Past President and senior lecturer at SU), Johann Kirsten (BER and professor at SU), Luther Chipembere (postgraduate student), André Jooste (professor at SU), Christien Langenhoven (postgraduate student), Nick Vink (emeritus professor at SU), and Khwezi Mbongwe (postgraduate student)