Wamkelekile, Welkom
Top UCT role for SA’s star trade negotiator
13 February 2019 | Story Supplied. Photo Liam Cornell. Read time 4 min.
South Africa’s top trade negotiator Professor Faizel Ismail has been named director designate of the University of Cape Town’s (UCT) Nelson Mandela School of Public Governance.
Ismail will take up his position at the school in July on the back of a glittering career negotiating major agreements for South Africa, including with the Southern African Customs Union, as well as the Trade and Development Agreement with the European Union. He also spent 10 years as ambassador to the World Trade Organisation and as a senior adviser to the Minister of Trade and Industry.
He takes over from Professor Alan Hirsch, and the two will spend several months together to ensure a smooth transition ahead of the official handover in July.
Ismail said he viewed his new appointment as an opportunity to contribute to rebuilding the institutions of the democratic state and the capacity of the next generation of policymakers, based on the values of late President Nelson Mandela.
Hailing Hirsch and his directorship, Ismail said the Mandela School has developed a global reputation for engaged, exciting scholarship that “gets to grips with African governance and leadership issues as lived and experienced”.
“I will be building on this solid foundation,” he said.
The school has trained 1 400 students from across Africa in leadership and academic programmes since its establishment in 2011. It combines academic insight with practice-based public service to promote strategic public leadership in Africa.
Respected academic
Its aim is to see the most talented of the upcoming generation aspire to deliver public service that evolves from the highest levels of leadership.
“We have built a truly African centre at [UCT] and, under [Ismail’s] leadership, we anticipate growing from strength to strength.”
The experienced international trade negotiator and respected academic is well placed to succeed Hirsch. Ismail is also a global expert on development issues, having published several books on trade and development.
His distinguished academic career saw him complete a BA and an LLB degree at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (Pietermaritzburg), an MPhil in Development Studies from the Institute of Development Studies (IDS) at Sussex University in the United Kingdom, and a PhD in Politics from the University of Manchester, also in the UK.
He is currently a professor in UCT’s School of Economics, in the Faculty of Commerce.
Ismail also the chaired the International Trade and Administration Commission (ITAC) from 2015 to 2018, and has been reappointed for a five-year term to 2023.
Hirsch said the Mandela School has a dynamic programme of growth planned that will secure its position as the most widely respected governance school in Africa.
“We have built a truly African centre at [UCT] and, under Faizel’s leadership, we anticipate growing from strength to strength.”
The school’s student demographics straddle the public and private sector, from civil society professionals to government officials and activists. Its 1 300 alumni today live in more than 30 countries.
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