Importance of academia in foreign-policy

The University of Limpopo (UL) in collaboration with the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) had on 26 May 2021 convened a virtual symposium to discuss: The Importance of Education (Academia) in the Formulation of South Africa’s Foreign Policy.

DIRCO Deputy Minister, Candith Mashego-Dlamini, delivered the keynote address, in which she shared the importance of academics and scholars in the formulation of foreign policy. “As thought leaders, you also constitute part of the broader civil society movements, and your influence must never be understated,” she said speaking at the UL’s Turfloop Campus.


Minister Mashego-Dlamini further said studies by the academia provided guidance in imagining an Africa that is united, independent and prosperous.  “We want to hear more African voices,” she emphasized. 

Researcher, Remofiloe Lobakeng, said foreign-policy making cannot exist in a vacuum. Lobakeng said barriers between the academia and foreign-policy makers should be abolished as policy making needed empirical and pragmatic data, particularly provided by the academia.

South Africa’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Mathu Joyini, had recognized DIRCO’s previous interaction with the academic world, citing collaborations on the White Paper, the National Development Plan (NDP), Foreign Service Act, and on the review of South Africa’s foreign policy in 2018.

Vice-Chancellor and Principal at the University, Mahlo Mokgalong, said education was guided by sound learning and could improve South Africa’s international standing.

The hybrid panel had comprised voices from the School of Law, the School of Economic and Management Sciences, Cultural Studies, the Department of Higher Education, and the youth. 

The panel acknowledged the challenges between foreign policy and the academia. 
Foremost was that foreign policy was inherently political. The focus of academia on theory and the application thereof to day-to-day scenarios was also seen to be a dilemma. The academia was challenged to shift from traditional research which hinged on theory to a more focus on day-to-day issues. 

Location: South Africa

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