Company/Organization
Eastern Cape Department of Rural Development and Agrarian Reform

Country
South Africa (Eastern Cape)

Biography
Mr Wiseman Mthozami Goqwana emerged with an MSc degree at the University of Fort Hare in 2004, after lecturing at the university for 8 years (1997 to 2004). Before joining the academic world, he worked as a Pasture Scientist in the Agriculture and Rural Development Research Institute (ARDRI) based at the University of Fort Hare, working under the supervision of Professor Peter Scogings. He was involved in the program Farming Systems Research and Extension with a strong focus on communal rangelands. During his tenure as a lecturer, he worked closely with the renowned fire ecologist Prof Winston Trollope as one of his mentors who shaped his career in the field of rangeland Science. At the University of Fort Hare, he lectured Pasture Ecology and Veld management. In 2004 he joined the then Department of Agriculture of the Eastern Cape as a Pasture Scientist based at the Dohne Agriculture Development Institute. His research focus was on the development of techniques for veld condition assessment and the dynamics of communal livestock farming. His interest in communal livestock farming research stemmed from his rural background, growing up in the former Transkei as a cattle herder, for his family during school holidays. He participated in a number of community outreach programs while at Fort Hare as well as in the Department of Agriculture. He underwent a number of professional development programs including a short stint at the University of Edinburgh, in Scotland under the supervision of Dr Andrew Illius in 1997. In 2007 he participated in the Agriculture Research for Development Program (ARD) a collaborative program between the University of Hare, the ARC and the Eastern Cape Department of Agriculture conducted by the International Centre for Development Oriented Research in Agriculture (ICRA) at the Wageningen University for Research in the Netherlands. This work culminated in a publication in the African Journal of Range and Forage Science. He has attended a number of International Rangelands Congresses, including the 6th International Rangeland Congress held in Townsville in Australia, 1999 and the 8th International Grassland Congress, held in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, China in 2008. Within the Department of Agriculture, he has participated in international collaborations that saw him visit the Ohio State University, Texas Agriculture and Mechanical University, Illinois University, Gottingen University and DEULLA in Lower Saxony, Germany. Having served for 5 years as the Chief Director for Agriculture Education and Training, in 2020 he rejoined the Research and Technology Development Program of the Eastern Cape Department of Rural Development and Agrarian Reform.

1. Session 1: Opening Of The 55th Annual Congress Of The Grassland Society Of Southern Africa - 21 Sep, 2020