A delegation of the Africa Research Institute (ARI) has made a visit to Stellenbosch University’s Centre of Military Studies between 19-26 May 2025. The visitors from ARI included Prof. János Besenyő, head of the Institute, his deputy and senior researcher Dr. David Vogel, and PhD student at the Doctoral School on Safety and Security Sciences and PhD researcher at MCC-HIIA Center for Geopolitics Richard Schneider spent an entire week as guests with their long-time partner, SU CEMIS.
The busy week organised by Dr. Moses B. Khanyile, Director of CEMIS and his team started with the warm welcoming words of Colonel Robyn Hlabana, the Acting Commandant of Military Academy. The tight schedule included introductory visits to various parts of CEMIS and the campus of the Faculty of Military Science of Stellenbosch University, meetings and negotiations and roundtable discussions with members of the faculty including Lt Col (Prof) Michelle Nel, the Vice-Dean Human Resources, Social Impact and Internationalisation of the Stellenbosch University Faculty of Military Science, where the parties reviewed the last five years of cooperation. The parties outlined future projects and identified common fields of interest as a continuation of the strong partnership between the two institutions, which has been active since 2019. Over the past six years, this collaboration has yielded:
- 7 international conferences
- 2 co-authored academic books
- Joint publication efforts in two scholarly journals: Scientia Militaria and Journal of Central and Eastern European African Studies (JCEEAS)
The details of the upcoming fifth Counter-Terrorism, Technology and Development in Africa (CTD) Conference to be held on 25 September 2025 were also on the agenda (for further information: here).
As part of the program, members of the delegation had also a chance to deliver lectures focusing on their research areas that later turned into discussions with students and faculty members, regarding the various topics in the field of security.
The hosts also made sure that at the weekend, the delegation had a chance to visit the premises that are situated in the West Coast National Park, as well as the military historical sights and places of interest both in and around the area of the campus as well as in Cape Town and the Cape Peninsula.
