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The DSI/NRF South African Research Chairs Initiative (SARChI) is funded by the Department of Science and Innovation (DSI) and administered by the Nationa! Research Foundation (NRF). The DSI/NRF South African Research Chair in Industrial Development (SARChl-ID) was awarded to Professor Fiona Tregenna in 2016, who was the Chair holder and lead the programme until 2025. The programme is led by Prof Rasmus Lema as the acting Chair holder in 2026.聽 The Chair is hosted at the 东京热 (UJ), where it operates as a centre located in the College of Business and Economics (CBE).

The Chair is a research and capacity-building programme in the broad field of industrial development.

The Chair is structured around the following main pillars:

1. Research

1. Research

SARChl-ID research is centred around the broad field of industrial development, including focus areas such as industrialisation and deindustrialisation, technology and innovation, structural change, the green economy, trade, regional value chains, and regional integration as they relate to industrial development. While most of the research conducted in our programme is applied in nature, we also do some more theoretically oriented research. The scope of our research encompasses South Africa, Africa as well as cross-country international studies.

In addition to individual research carried out by team members, SARChl-ID has been involved in research such as the Community of Practice, and 2 waves of the Survey of Small and Medium Manufacturing firms in the City of Johannesburg. SARChl-ID team members regularly produce research output in peer-reviewed journals, book chapters, and also the SARChl ID Working Paper series. As part of its expanding its research collaboration efforts, the Chair hosts visiting professors and international research associate, most of whom also publish journal articles and engage in SARChI-ID activities in various ways, such as supervising postgraduate students.

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2. Training and Capacity-Building

2. Training and Capacity-Building

One of our key mandates as a product of the NRF is to provide training and capacity building to postgraduate students and post doctoral research fellows. SARChI ID provides capacity building through the supervision of postgraduate supervision, namely Honours, Masters and Doctoral students. In addition, the Chair nominates postgraduate students for NRF Scholarship funding each year.

The Chair also hosts post-doctoral research fellows with funding from the NRF. SARChI-ID offers training through a PhD (Economics) with specialisation in Industrial Development within the School of Economics.

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3. Public Engagement and Policy Development

3. Public Engagement and Policy Development

SARChl-ID annually hosts and collaborates in various public engagement events including conferences, book launches and other public engagements. We host the Annual Young Scholars Conference in conjunction with the Young Scholars Initiative and are a partner in the Annual TIPS Forum hosted by Trade and Industrial Policy Strategies (TIPS).

SARChl-ID is also involved in policy engagement within South Africa, and at a regional and continental level. A major pillar of our policy engagement has been the Industrial Development Think Tank (IDTT), in partnership with the Centre for Competition, Regulation and Economic Development and also our Policy Brief Series.

In addition to several engagements on events aimed at deepening understanding of issues underpinning policy requirements, SARChI-ID team members sit on numerous high level national and international boards, councils and panels.

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